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FOUNDED  BY  JOHN  D.  ROCKEFELLER 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  THE 
ARTHURIAN  ROMANCES  OF 
CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


A  DISSERTATION 

SUBMITTED  TO  THE  FACULTY  OP  THE  GRADUATE  SCHOOL  OF  ARTS  AND 
LITERATURE  IN  CANDIDACY  FOR  THE  DEGREE  OF 
DOCTOR  OF  PHILOSOPHY 

(DEPARTMENT  OF  ENGLISH) 


BY 

ANNETTE  BROWN  HOPKINS 


MENASHA,  WIS. 
THE  COLLEGIATE  PRESS 
GEORGE  BANTA  PUBLISHING  CO. 
1913 


win 


TO 

LILIAN  WELSH 

WHOSE  INTEREST   HAS   CONTRIBUTED   ESSENTIALLY   TO  THE 
COMPLETION  OF  THIS  WORK 


644544 


CONTENTS 

Introduction  : 

Statement  of  the  problem   1 

Concerning  the  life  of  Wace   10 

Concerning  the  life  of  Crestien  .   12 

Chapter  I,  Episodes  : 

Erecf  The  marriage  and  coronation  ceremonies   17 

Cliges,  The  rebellion  of  Count  Angres   34 

Alexander's  exploit  at  Windsor   40 

The  four  days'  tournament   42 

Arthur's  expedition  against  Constantinople   47 

Chapter  II,  Episodes,  continued: 

Lancelot,  The  hostility  between  Arthur's  kingdom  and  the 

land  of  Gorre   50 

Guinevere's  unfaithfulness   61 

Yvain,  The  fountain  of  Broceliande   63 

Harpin  de  la  Montaigne   66 

Perceval,  King  Rion  of  the  Isles   67 

Chapter  III,  Characters   78 

Chapter  IY,  Geography: 

Bretaigne  and  Breton   114 

Carnant  and  Nantes   121 

General  Geography   124 

Crestien  in  England   129 

Chapter  Y: 

Romantic  background    132 

Social  and  moral  ideas   144 

Conclusions    146 

Index   152 


PREFATORY  NOTE 


The  following  study  grew  out  of  a  seminary  paper  on  the  rela- 
tion of  Waee's  Brut  to  the  Cliges  of  Crestien  de  Troies  which  I 
prepared  for,  and  at  the  suggestion  of,  Professor  William  A.  Nitze. 
My  aim  in  the  study  has  been  to  show  that  among  the  many  and 
diverse  influences  open  to  Crestien  in  the  composition  of  his  Arthur- 
ian romances,  the  Norman  chronicler,  Wace,  may  hold  a  more  im- 
portant place  than  criticism  has  heretofore  assigned  him;  and  in- 
directly to  point  out,  therefore,  that  Wace  is  perhaps  more  signifi- 
cant than  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  in  the  transmission  of  chronicle 
Arthurian  material  to  the  French  poets. 

In  my  preparation  of  the  work  I  have  received  assistance  for 
which  I  feel  greatly  indebted.  To  Professor  Nitze  I  wish  to  ex- 
press my  appreciation,  not  only  for  the  suggestion  of  the  subject, 
but  also  for  his  stimulating  criticism  and  for  his  constant  interest 
in  the  progress  of  the  work.  To  Professor  Thomas  A.  Jenkins  I  am 
indebted  also  for  unfailing  interest,  for  much  of  the  proof  reading, 
and  for  discriminating  suggestion,  especially  concerning  the  lingu- 
istic problems  involved.  I  am  also  under  obligation  to  Professor 
John  M.  Manly  who,  together  with  Professors  Nitze  and  Jenkins, 
both  by  precept  and  by  example,  has  led  me  to  some  appreciation 
of  literary  values  and  scholarly  ideals. 

Lastly,  I  would  make  acknowledgement  to  my  former  instructor 
and  present  colleague,  Professor  Hans  Froelicher  of  Goucher  Col- 
lege, for  his  careful  reading  of  the  final  proof. 

Baltimore,  Md.  A.  B.  H. 


•THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  THE  ARTHURIAN  RO- 
MANCES OF  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Introduction 

All  students  of  Arthurian  romance  have  doubtless  noticed  the 
fact  that  attention1  has  now  and  then  been  called,  generally  in  an  in- 
cidental way,  to  the  influence  exerted  by  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  or 
his  translator,  Wace,  on  the  French  metrical  romances  of  the  twelfth 
century  and  succeeding  periods.  Bedier,  for  example,  makes  it  evi- 
dent 2  that  Thomas  is  indebted  to  Wace  for  descriptions,  episodes, 
geographical  and  personal  names,  and  a  certain  historical  verisimili- 
tude ;  in  other  words  that  Wace  exerted  upon  the  author  of  Tristan 
an  important  influence.  G.  Paris,  on  the  other  hand,  thought  that  the 
indebtedness  of  the  metrical  romances  2a  to  the  chronicles  is,  if  it 
exists,  slight  and  affects  only  certain  details.   In  view  of  these  opin- 

*  It  has  seemed  best  not  to  include  the  Guillaume  d'  Angleterre  in  this  study,  partly 
because  the  nature  of  the  material  handled  here  is  distinctly  Arthurian,  and  the  G.  is 
not  an  Arthurian  romance;  and  partly  because  Crestien's  authorship  of  this  poem  has 
not  found  general  acceptance.  G.  Paris  always  regarded  it  as  not  the  work  of  C.  de 
Troies.  Cf.  Bom.  VIII  (1879)  315  n.;  XIII  (1884)  442;  XXI  (1892)  139;  XXIX 
(1900)  154;  EL  XXX,  1888,  23;  Manuel  2nd  ed.  1888,  215;  Esquisse  hist,  de  la  Litt. 
Frangaise,  1907,  148;  JdS,  1901,  705,  n.  5;  1902,  58,  n.  1;  306,  n.  3.  See  also  Paul 
Meyer,  Bom.  XIII,  315;  XXXVII  (1908)  485;  O.  Borrmann,  Litt-blatt  XXIX  (1908): 
Das  Kurze  Beimpaar  bei  C.  von  Troyes  mit  besonderer  Beriicksichtigung  des  W.  von  Eng., 
Erlangen,  1907;  reprinted  in  BF  (1908)  XXV,  287  ff.  Crestien's  chief  supporter  is  W. 
Foerster  who  has  discussed  the  question  in  nearly  all  of  his  editions  of  Crestien's  works. 
His  latest  argument  in  ZrP,  July  19J.0,  470  ff.,  seems  to  me  to  leave  little  to  be  said 
on  the  other  side.  Agreeing  with  Foerster  are:  Groeber,  GGr  II,  1,  524;  ZfS  XXII 
(1900)  4;  Wilmotte,  MA,  1889,  188;  Evolution  des  Bomans  Frangais,  Paris,  1903; 
65 ;  R.  Miiller,  Vntersuchungen  uber  den  Verfasser  der  afz.  Dichtung,  W.  von  Eng., 
Bonn,  1881.  A  discussion  of  Crestien's  possible  indebtedness  to  Wace  in  the  Guillaume 
must  be  reserved  for  separate  study. 

1  Bedier,  Le  Boman  de  Tristan  par  Thomas,  "Soc.  des  Anc.  Textes,"  Paris,  1905, 
I,  5,  n.  1;  6,  n.  2;  7,  n.  If.;  52,  n.  2;  72  ff . ;  76,  n.  1;  81  ff . ;  236,  n.  1;  254, 
n.  1;  289  &  nn.;  307,  nn.  2,  4;  308,  n.  1;  406,  note  to  v.  2884;  II,  47  ff . ;  99  ff. 
Brugger,  ZfS  XX  (1898)  79  ff.  Golther,  Tristan  und  Isolde  in  den  Dichtungen  des  Mit- 
telalters  und  der  neuen  Zeit,  Leipzig,  1907,  142  ff.  Foerster,  Der  Earrenritter .  .  .  .und 
das  Wilhelmsleben .  .  .  .von  Christian  von  Troyes,  Halle,  1899,  CLXXVIII.  GGr  II, 
499.  Lot,  Bom.  XXIV  (1895),  525,  527;  XXVII  (1898),  41  ff.,  555,  567;  XXVIII 
(1899),  3  ff.,  47,  n.  2.  Paris,  G.,  Bom.  X  (1881),  488;  XVIII  (1889),  590;  XXVIII, 
48,  n.;  Hist,  de  la  Litt.  Frangaise,  XXX,  5.;  La  Litt.  Frangaise  au  Moyen  Age  (Manuel 
4th  ed.)  Paris,  1909,  95.;  JdS,  1902,  307;  Esquisse,  110.  Paris,  P.,  Les  Bomans  de  la 
Table  Bonde,  Paris,  1868-77,  I,  24.  Thedens,  Li  Chevaliers  as  Deus  Espees  in  seinem 
Verhaltnis  zu  seinen  Quellen,  insbesondere  zu  den  Bomanen  Crestiens  von  Troyes,  Got- 
tingen,  1908,  126. 

1  Only  a  few  cases  he  considers  doubtful.    Op.  cit.,  II,  99. 

2a  He  admitted  greater  indebtedness  on  the  part  of  the  prose  romances,  however. 
See  HL  XXX,  31,  n.  Cp.  Bruce,  J.  D.,  Historia  Meriodoci  and  De  Ortu  Waluuanii 
 Gottingen,  1913:  Baltimore,  The  Johns  Hopkins  Press,  pp.  VIII,  IX,  etc. 


2 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


ions  it  has  seemed  worth  while  to  investigate  consistently  the  ro- 
mances of  Crestien  de  Troies  for  the  purpose  of  discovering  what 
relation  exists  between  the  poet  of  Champagne  and  the  authors  of 
these  semi-historical  chronicles.  As  Crestien 's  narratives  are  based 
for  the  most  part  on  an  Arthurian  framework,  it  is  in  the  Arthur- 
ian portions  of  the  chronicles  that  resemblance  is  mainly  to  be 
sought,  hence  it  is  with  Arthurian  material  almost  exclusively  that 
this  study  will  deal. 

The  legend  of  Arthur  was  handed  down  through  two  distinct 
channels :  oral  tradition  and  written  sources 3  consisting  of  the 
chronicle  histories  of  Britain,  and  perhaps  of  contes  or  lais  in  the 
style  of  Marie  de  France.  Certainly  oral  tradition  must  have  played 
a  great  part  in  the  development  of  Arthurian  romance,  but  the 
degree  of  oral  influence  is  obviously  difficult  to  estimate.  In  ex- 
amining the  chronicles  as  a  source  we  have  a  much  more  tangible 
substance  to  handle,  and  the  results  obtained  may  in  consequence 
be  more  satisfactory.  It  must  be  remembered,  however,  that  the 
chronicles  themselves  were  subject  to  popular  influence.4  This 
fact  opens  up  the  possibility,  in  some  instances  the  probability,  of 
a  popular  source  common  to  both  the  romance  and  the  history; 
thus  a  case  of  apparent  borrowing  from  the  chronicle  may  be  merely 
a  parallel.  As  such  cases  seldom  admit  of  conclusive  proof,  they 
help  to  complicate  the  problem  of  the  romancer's  indebtedness  to 
the  historian.  Wace,  for  example,  introduces  into  chronicle  history 
the  order  of  the  Round  Table,  but  no  one  believes  that  the  Roman 
de  Brut  alone  is  the  source  of  Crestien 's  allusions  to  that  institu- 
tion. The  Round  Table,  as  Wace  himself  says,5  was  famous  even 
in  his  day.  Hence,  though  Crestien  must  have  been  familiar  with 
Wace's  account,  it  is  equally  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  Round 
Table  was  known  to  him  through  other  channels  6  as  well.  One  "must 

3  For  the  most  important  theories  on  the  sources  of  Arthurian  material  and  its 
transmission  to  French  soil,  see  Karrenritter  CXIV.  Loth,  Revue  Geltique  XIII  (1892) 
475.  Nutt,  Studies  on  the  Legend  of  the  Holy  Grail,  London,  1888;  Folklore  Jour.  II, 
234;  RC  XII  (1891)  181.  Paris,  G.,  Rom.  X,  448;  Manuel  4th  ed.  1909,  95;  HL 
XXX,  5.  Zimmer,  GGA  (1890)  786;  ZfS  XII  (1891)  1;  Lit.  Centralbl.  1900,  col.  2072. 
Voretzsch,  Einfiihrung  in  das  Studium  der  aft.  Lit.,  Halle,  1905,  339  ff. 

*  See  Fletcher,  R.  H.,  Arthurian  Material  in  the  Chronicles,  HSN  X  (1906)  6,  10, 
16,  32,  40,  42,  49,  85,  115,  137. 

8  Le  Roux  de  Lincy,  Le  Roman  de  Brut  par  Wace,  Rouen,  1836,  II,  vv.  9998-9. 

"See  Mott,  L.  F.,  PMLA  XIII  (1905)  231.  Brown,  A.  C.  L.,  HSN  VII  (1900) 
183.  Golther,  Gesch.  der  deut.  Litt.,  Stuttgart,  1893,  I,  148.  Weston,  J.  L.,  in  MSlanget 
Wilmotte.  Paris.  1910.  883.    Zimmer,  GGA  (1890)  795.    See  also  below,  pp.  138  ff. 


INTRODUCTION 


3 


be  on  the  lookout  for  sources  common  to  both  chronicle  and  romance 
and  be  prepared  to  give  the  non-chronicle  origin  due  credit. 

Arthurian  story  as  presented  in  the  chronicles  of  Britain  devel- 
oped out  of  shadowy  beginnings.7  The  important  points  in  the 
records  before  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  are  as  follows:  Gildas,  De 
Exicidio  et  Conquestu  Britanniae  8  (547ca.)  does  not  mention  Ar- 
thur, but  he  describes  the  Arthurian  period  in  which  he  names 
Ambrosius  Aurelianus,  a  Roman-Briton  leader,  and  gives  an  account 
of  the  battle  of  Mt.  Badon  or  Bath  Hill.  Nennius,  Historia  Brit- 
onum9  (796ca.)  is  the  first  to  introduce  Arthur  by  name.  He  en- 
titles him  Dux  bellorum.10  Ambrosius  Aurelianus  here  becomes 
the  magician  of  the  Vortigern  tower  episode,  "the  boy  without  a 
father,"  and  is  called  merely,  Ambrosius.11  Twelve  battles  are 
named  in  which  Arthur  is  victor  over  the  Saxons;  the  last  is  Mt. 
Badon  where  Arthur  alone  killed  160  men.  William  of  Malmes- 
bury,  Gesta  Begum  Anglorum  (1125) 12  shows  that  before  the  mid- 
dle of  the  twelfth  century  the  distinction  had  appeared  between  the 
historical  and  the  fabulous  Arthur.13  Henry  of  Huntington,  His- 
toria Anglorum1*  (1135ca.)  shows  the  effect  of  popular  stories,  in 
that  he  calls  Arthur,  Dux  militum  et  regum  Britanniae.  The  chron- 
icles written  from  the  distinctly  Saxon  point  of  view,  such  as  Bede's 
Ecclesiastical  History  (731),  the  Saxon  Chronicle  beginning  with 
the  year  527,  and  JEthelweard' s  Chronicle  15  (975ca.)  do  not  men- 
tion Arthur  at  all,  but  they  describe  the  period,  and  the  wars  be- 
tween the  Britons  and  the  Saxons.    These  records  form  the  his- 

7  See  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  1  ff. 

8  Mommsen,  Mon.  Germ.  Hist.,  Auct.  Antiquissimi,  XIII,  Chron.  Ill,  Berlin,  1898, 
1.    Giles,  J.  A.,  Six  Old  English  Chronicles,  "Bohn  Lib.",  London,  1896,  295. 

9  Mommsen,  op.  cit.,  113.  Gunn,  W.,  (Vatican  MS)  London,  1819.  Stevenson,  J., 
(Harl  MS)  London,  1838.  San  Marte,  Nennius  und  Gildas,  Berlin,  1844.  Giles,  op.  cit.. 
383.    For  further  bibliography  see  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  8. 

10  For  a  discussion  of  this  title,  see  Zimmer,  Nennius  Yindicatus,  Berlin,  1893,  285. 
u  See  p.  5,  n.  18  and  Fletcher,  op.  cit.  18,  92  for  explanation  of  the  confusion. 
"Stubbs,  "Rolls  Series,"  1887-9. 

14  "This  is  the  Arthur  concerning  whom  the  idle  tales  of  the  Britons  rave  wildly 
even  to-day, — a  man  entirely  worthy  to  be  celebrated,  not  in  the  foolish  dreams  of  deceit- 
ful fables,  but  in  truthful  histories;  since  for  a  long  time  he  sustained  the  declining 
fortunes  of  his  native  land  and  incited  the  uncrushed  courage  of  his  people  to  war." 
Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  40. 

"Arnold,  "Rolls  Series,"  1879. 

16  Mon.  Hist.  Brit.,  499  ff.  The  Chronicle  of  St.  Michel's  Mount  (1056)  and  the 
Annates  Cambriae  (950ca.)  contain  brief  records  of  Arthur.    See  Fletcher,  op.  ext.,  31  ff. 


4 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTEEN  DE  TROIES 


torical  contribution  to  Arthurian  story  preceding  the  Historia 
Begum  Britanniae  16  (1135ca.)  of  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth. 

Geoffrey's  sources,  as  Fletcher  17  points  out  (p.  49)  include  all 
the  important  historians  before  his  time,  together  with  general  and 
nearly  contemporary  history,  contemporary  manners  and  customs, 
myths,  popular  stories,  and  the  Liber  Vetustissimus  in  the  British 
tongue,  probably  fabulous,  which  Geoffrey  states  17a  was  given  him 
by  Walter,  Archdeacon  of  Oxford.  Geoffrey,  then,  utilized  practi- 
cally every  kind  of  material  available,  and  his  additions  to  Arthur- 
ian story  are  many  and  important. 

The  Historia,  which  is  composed  of  12  books,  devotes  to  Arthur- 
ian narrative  from  VI,  vi  to  XI,  ii.  The  main  points  18  of  the  nar- 
rative are  here  outlined. 

VIII,  xvii-xviii  Accession  of  Uther  Pendragon.    Wars  with  the 

Saxons. 

xix-xx      Uther 's  amour  and  marriage  with  Ygerne.  The 

birth  of  Arthur, 
xxi-xxiv   Wars  with  the  Saxons.    Death  of  Uther. 

IX,  i-viii        Accession  of  Arthur  and  wars  with  the  Saxons. 

Battle  of  Bath  Hill  in  which  Arthur  carries  the 
picture  of  the  Virgin,19  and  slays  470  men.  Sub- 
jugation of  Scotland. 

ix  Arthur  distributes  fiefs  to  the  brothers  Aguisel, 

Urien,  and  Lot,  the  father  of  Modred  and  Ga- 
wain.   He  marries  Guanhumara. 

x  Foreign  conquests, — Ireland,  Iceland,  Gothland, 

the  Orkneys.   Twelve  years  of  peace. 

xi  Conquests  continued, — Norway,  Dacia  (Denmark) 

Aquitaine,  and  Gaul.  Arthur  bestows  Neustria 
(Normandy)  upon  Bedver,  his  butler,  and  An- 
degavia(Anjou)  on  Caius,  his  sewer. 

18  The  best  edition  of  the  Historia  is  by  San  Marte  (A.  Schulz)  Gottfried's  von  Mon- 
mouth Historia  Regum  Britanniae  und  Brut  Tysylio,  Halle,  1854.    See  also  Giles, 

op.  cit.,  89  ff.    For  a  bibliography  of  Geoffrey's  life  and  works  see  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  50  f. 

17  See  also  Rhys  &  Evans,  The  Texts  of  the  Bruts  from  the  Red  Book  of  Hergest, 
Oxford,  1890,  p.  XXVII. 

I7a  HRB,  I,  i.    All  citations  are  made  from  the  San  Marte  ed. 

18  Bks.  VI, vi — VHI.xvii,  though  properly  belonging  to  Arthurian  story — the  ac- 
count of  Merlin's  deeds  and  prophecies — are  omitted  because  they  have  no  bearing  on  the 
present  problem.  Merlin  is  the  development  of  the  Ambrosius  Aurelianus  of  Gildas.  See 
Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  18,  92. 

19  Compare  Nennius,  in  Giles,  op.  cit.,  408. 


INTKODUCTION 


5 


xii-xiv      The  grand  coronation. 

xv-xx  Rome  demands  tribute  from  Britain.  Arthur's 
council  decides  on  war.  Arthur  assembles  his 
forces. 

X,  ii  Arthur  entrusts  his  kingdom  to  Queen  Guanhu- 

mara  and  his  nephew,  Modred,  and  embarks  for 
the  continent. 

iii  Arthur's  adventure  with  the  giant  of  Mont  St.- 

Michel. 

iv-xii  The  war  with  Rome, — exploits  of  Gawain  and 
others.  Death  of  Caius  and  Bedver.  Defeat  of 
the  Romans. 

xiii  Arthur  gets  word  that  Modred  has  usurped  the 

throne  and  married  Guanhumara. 

XI,  i-ii  Arthur's  return  to  Britain.   War  with  Modred. 

Death  of  Gawain  and  Aguisel  whose  realm  de 
scends  to  his  nephew,  Eventus  (Yvain)  son  of 
his  brother,  Urien.    Retirement  of  Guanhuma- 
ra.   Death  of  Modred.    Disappearance  of  Ar- 
thur. 

It  is  now  evident  that  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  is  the  literary 
creator  of  Arthurian  story,  a  creator  in  the  sense  that  he  has 
brought  together  from  scattered  sources,  learned  and  popular,  oral 
and  written,  much  available  information  already  connected  with 
Arthur  or  that  was  possible  of  connection,  and  has  worked  it  over 
into  a  permanent  and  accessible  form. 

The  next  important  step  in  the  progress  of  Arthurian  story  was 
made  by  the  Norman  poet,  Wace,20  whose  Geste  as  Bretons  or  Bo- 
man  de  Brut  (date,  1155)  21  purports  to  be  a  translation  of  the 
Historia.  It  is  important  to  make  clear  at  the  outset  the  rela- 
tion of  the  French  to  the  Latin  work  in  order  to  decide,  if  possible, 
whether  Crestien's  indebtedness  to  Wace  involves  also  a  use  of 
Geoffrey.  We  may  begin  with  Wace's  own  statement  as  to  his  con- 
nection with  the  Historia. 

B  I,  9   Ki  vuelt 22  o'ir  et  vuelt  saveir 

20  For  account  of  Wace's  life  see  pp.  10  ff. 

21  Brut  15299. 

22  Since  the  only  text  of  the  Brut  accessible  at  present  is  not  a  critical  text,  and  con- 
tains a  variety  of  dialectal  forms,  I  have  attempted  to  restore  my  quotations  in  some 
measure  to  the  Norman  dialect,  using  as  a  basis  Warnke's  ed.  of  the  Lais  of  Marie  de 
France,  Halle,  1885. 


6 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


De  rei  en  rei  et  d'eir  en  eir, 

Qui  oil  furent  et  dunt  il  vindrent 

Qui  Engleterre  primes  tindrent 

Quanz  reis  i  a  en  ordre  eii 

Qui  anceis  et  qui  puis  i  fu, 

Maistre  Wace  l'a  translate 

Qui  en  cunte  la  verite 

Si  cum  li  livres  le  devise. 
Wace's  idea  of  a  translation  was  that  of  a  free  paraphrase  where 
the  translator  was  at  liberty  to  adhere  literally  to  the  original 
or  to  depart  from  it  at  will.  Alfred  Ulbrich  in  his  dissertation 
Tiber  das  Verhdltnis  von  Wace's  Roman  de  Brut  zu  seiner  Quelle 
der  Hist.  reg.  Brit,  des  Gottfried  von  Monmouth,  Erlangen,  1908, 
has  shown  that  Wace  uses  both  of  these  methods;  at  times  he 
takes  over  Geoffrey 's  text  word  for  word,  and  again,  he  is  quite  free 
with  omissions  and  additions.  Ulbrich,  Fletcher,23  and  I  myself,  after 
comparative  analysis  of  the  two  works  have  arrived  at  practically 
the  same  conclusion:  the  changes  made  by  Wace  are  nearly  all  in 
an  effort  towards  artistic  improvement,  and  his  additions  to  Geoff- 
rey 's  facts  are  with  two  exceptions,  unimportant.  These  exceptions 
are  the  Round  Table  and  Arthur's  return  from  Avalon. 

In  estimating  Wace's  influence  on  Arthurian  romance,  his 
stylistic  additions  are  of  the  highest  significance  because  they  give 
to  his  book  an  artistic  value  that  Geoffrey's  history  does  not  pos- 
sess, and  thus  bring  the  French  narrative  much  closer  to  the  taste 
and  abilities  of  the  romancers  who  were  to  carry  on  Arthurian 
story  to  later  times.  The  author  of  the  Historia  is  by  no  means 
without  narrative  and  descriptive  skill,  but  as  anyone  can  see  who 
compares  the  two  styles,  Wace  often  gets  into  his  short  couplets  a 
fire  and  a  feeling  impossible  to  Geoffrey's  polished  Latin  periods. 
A  few  examples  of  his  method  of  amplifying  and  enlivening  his 
narrative  may  make  this  distinction  clear, 
a.    Mere  amplification. 

1.  ERB  I,  iii.  Aeneas  post  Trojanum  bellum  urbis  excidium  cum 
Ascanio  diffugiens,  Italiam  navigio  adivit. 

B  10-36.   26  lines. 

2.  HRB  II,  vii.    Condidit  etiam  Ebracus  urbem  Alclud  Albaniam 

M  Ulbrich,  op.  ext.,  71  ff.    Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  142  f. 


INTRODUCTION 


7 


versus  et  oppidum  montis  Agned :  quod  nunc  Castellum  Puel- 
larum  dieitur  et  montem  Dolorosum. 
B  1558-1574.   17  lines. 

3.  HUB  IX,  i.  Erat  auteni  Arturus  quindicem  annorum  juvenis, 
inauditiae  virtutis  atque  liberalitatis :  in  quo  tantam  gratiam 
innata  bonitas  praestiterat,  ut  a  cunctis  fere  populis  amaretur. 
B  9247-9265.23a  18  lines. 

4.  HBB  IX,  xiv.  Refecti  tandem  epulis,  diversi  diversos  ludos 
composituri  campos  extra  civitatem  adeunt.  Mox  milites  simu- 
lacrum praelii  ciendo,  equestram  ludum  componunt:  mulieres 
in  edito  murorum  aspicientes,  in  curiales  amoris  flammas  amore 
joci  irritant.    Alii  telis,  alii  hasta,  alii  ponderosorum  lapidum 

s  jactu,  alii  saxis:  alii  aleis  caeterorumque  jocorum  diversitate 
contendentes,  quod  diei  rastabat,  postposita  lite,  praetereunt. 
B  10801-10867.   66  lines. 

In  comparing  these  passages  it  will  be  observed  that  the  elabor- 
ation does  not  consist  merely  in  the  addition  of  words  necessitated 
by  the  transition  from  a  highly  inflected  to  a  less  fully  inflected 
language,  but  in  the  addition  of  ideas,  of  specific  detail.  In  most 
cases  of  elaboration  Wace  infuses  into  his  narrative  much  of  the 
spirit,  emotion,  and  realistic  detail  that  mark  the  true  mediaeval 
poet  of  romance. 

b.  Elaboration  infused  with  spirit. 
1.  HRB  IX,  vi.  Cumque  nulli  prout  reperiebatur  parceret,  con- 
venerunt  omnes  Episcopi  miserandae  patriae,  cum  omni  clero 
sibi  subdito,  reliquias  sanctorum  et  ecclesiastica  sacramenta 
nudis  ferentes  pedibus,  misericordiam  regis  pro  salute  populi 
sui  implorantes.  Mox  ut  praesentiam  ejus  habuerunt,  flexis 
genibus  depreeati  sunt,  ut  pietatem  super  contrita  gente  habe- 
ret.  Satis  etenim  periculi  intulerat,  nec  erat  opus  perpaucos 
qui  remanserant,  usque  ad  unum  delere.  Sineret  illos  porti 
uniculam  patriae  habere,  perpetuae  servitutis  jugum  ultro  con- 
gestaturos.  Cumque  regem  in  hunc  modum  rogavissent,  com- 
movit  eum  pietas  in  lachrymas,  sanctorumque  virorum  petitioni 
acquiescens,  veniam  donavit. 
B  9700-9762.    62  lines. 

Wace  dwells  on  the  wretched  appearance  of  the  petitioners, — 

Ma  For  the  significance  of  this  passage  see  p.  81. 


8  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CEESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

women  with  children  in  their  arms,  crying,  ' '  Sire,  have  mercy  on  us. 
If  you  cannot  pity  the  fathers,  behold  the  children  and  the 
mothers."  He  depicts  their  woe  and  fear  over  the  separation  of 
families,  and  describes  at  length  their  appeal  to  Arthur  in  the 
name  of  Christianity.  Though  the  human  element  is  not  absent  in 
Geoffrey's  account  the  Latin  passage  has  nothing  of  the  vividness 
of  this. 

2.  A  passage  in  which  the  contrast  is  particularly  noticeable  is 
that  describing  Guinevere's  behavior  after  Modred's  defeat.  Geoff- 
rey says  merely: 

HRB  XI,  i.    Quod  ut  Ganhumarae  reginae  annunciatum  est, 
confestim  desperans,  ab  Eboraco  ad  urbem  Legionum  diffugit 
atque  in  templo  Julii  Martyris  inter  monachas  ejusdem  caste 
vivere  proposuit,  et  vitam  monachalem  suscepit. 
This  implies  that  she  went  merely  for  the  reason  that  her  cause 
was  lost.   Waee  dwells  on  her  recognition  of  her  guilt,  and  we  can 
imagine  that  he  saw  the  end  of  Guinevere  not  without  feeling  when 
he  wrote : 

B  13621     Mielz  volsist  morte  estre  que  vive, 
Mult  en  esteit  morne  et  pensive, 
A  Karliiin  s'en  est  fui'e, 
S'en  entra  en  une  abei'e 
Hues  devint  nunne  velee; 
Tute  sa  vie  i  fu  celee. 
Ne  fu  o'ie  ne  veiie, 
Ne  fu  trovee  ne  seiie 
Pur  la  vergogne  del  mesfait 

Et  del  pechie  qu  'ele  aveit  fait.         23  lines  in  all. 

3.  A  passage  entirely  absent  from  the  Historia  is  that  describing 
the  bustle  of  preparation  pending  Arthur's  grand  coronation 
(B  10609-34).  It  glows  with  color  and  action,  and  makes  the 
reader  feel  as  though  he  were  acually  being  jostled  in  the  crowded 
streets  and  courts  of  a  mediaeval  town. 

4.  Still  another  such  passage  is  the  account  of  Arthur's  fight  with 
the  giant  of  Mont  St.-Michel  where  Wace  adds  the  interesting  de- 
tail, no  doubt  drawn  from  personal  observation,  that  Arthur  and 
his  men  had  to  wait  for  the  tide  to  go  out  before  they  could  cross 
over  to  the  rock  (11846  ff.). 


INTRODUCTION 


9 


5.    At  times  Wace  slips  into  a  lyrical  strain  that  might  well  be- 
come Crestien  or  even  the  author  of  Partonopeus  de  Blois: 
B  3043      Bel  fu  li  tens  cum  en  este 

Bele  la  nuit  e  sanz  ore, 

E  la  lune  bien  cler  raia. 

Again,  on  the  eve  of  the  war  with  Rome  when  Gawain  says  to 
Arthur : 

B  11045     Bone  est  la  pais  apres  la  guerre 

Plus  riche  e  mieldre  en  est  la  terre, 
Mult  sunt  bones  les  gaberies, 
Li  deduit  e  les  drueries  : 
Pur  la  noblesce  de  s'amie 

Fait  juevnes  hum  chevalerie.  (See  pp.  Ill,  146). 
These  citations  are  only  a  few  of  the  many  that  might  be  col- 
lected to  show  Wace's  literary  superiority  to  his  original,  but  they 
are  sufficient  to  indicate  that  the  Norman  chronicler  though  no  less 
a  historian  than  Geoffrey  is  far  more  of  a  poet  and  hence  much 
nearer  to  the  taste  of  Thomas,  Crestien,  and  other  romancers  to 
whom  his  work  was  accessible.  Crestien 's  style  also  is  marked  by 
vividness  and  abundance  of  realistic  detail.  Indeed  there  is  not 
a  single  parallel  between  Crestien  and  Wace,  where,  when  the 
facts  are  identical  as  stated  by  Geoffrey,  Wace,  and  Crestien,  the 
Champagne  poet  has  not  taken  Wace's  details  in  addition  to  the 
facts.  These  details  are  in  most  cases  altogether  absent  from  the 
Historia.  Thus  the  very  nature  of  Crestien 's  art  invites  him  to  fol- 
low Wace.  Bedier,  in  his  edition  23b  of  Thomas 's  Tristan  argues 
on  this  same  ground  that  his  poet  used  Wace  and  not  Geoffrey. 
Furthermore,  Wace  writes  in  Crestien 's  tongue,  and  uses  the  roman- 
tic verse  form  of  the  period.  These  considerations  while  obvious 
are  not  without  weight.  Certainly  no  poet  in  that  day  of  transla- 
tion, borrowing,  and  imitation  would  be  likely  to  reject  a  source 
ready  made  for  one  that  must  be  entirely  worked  over.  It  can 
scarcely  be  proved  that  Crestien  was  not  acquainted  with  the  Latin 
history,  but  it  can  safely  be  said  that  he  shows  no  24  evidence  of 
such  knowledge.  Comparison  of  the  three  styles  leads  to  the  con- 
clusion that  even  if  Crestien  had  the  opportunity  of  using  either 

^See  I,  5,  n.  1;  82,  n.  1;  308,  n.  1;  II,  99.  Festgabe  fur  H.  Suchier,  Halle,  1900, 
82,  n.  1. 

24  See  the  Dolorous  Mount,  pp.  142  ff. 


10 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


the  Historia  or  the  Brut  he  deliberately  chose  the  latter  because  it 
was  in  closer  touch  with  his  genius. 

Wace  Crestien 

Biographical  information  concerning  both  Wace  and  Crestien  is 
exceedingly  meager.  What  little  we  know  about  Wace  is  preserved 
in  his  own  poems  (chiefly  in  the  Roman  de  Rou)  in  the  Chronique 
Ascendante  des  Dues  de  Normandie,2ia  in  four  documents  connected 
with  the  history  of  the  cathedral  of  Bayeux,  and  in  Lajamon's  Brut. 

The  facts  furnished  by  these  records  are  as  follows:  The  poet 
was  born  in  the  island  of  Jersey  (R  II,  5321  ff.).25 

His  mother  was  probably  the  daughter  of  Toustein,  chamber- 
lain to  Robert  I,  duke  of  Normandy  (R  II,  3237  ff.).  His  father 
seems  to  have  been  present  at  St.  Valeri,  at  the  embarkation  of  Wil- 
liam the  Conqueror  for  England  (R  II,  6445  ff.).  While  still  a 
child,  Wace  was  taken  to  Caen  to  learn  letters  (R  II,  5326  f.)  ;  later 
he  continued  his  education  in  France.26  From  France  he  returned 
to  Caen  where  he  became  clerc  lisant,27  an  office  which  he  held  dur- 
ing the  reigns  of  three  Henries  (R  II,  177  ff,  11493  ff.)  who  were 
kings  of  England  and  dukes  of  Normandy.28  At  Caen,  too,  he 
busied  himself  with  the  making  of  romances  and  serventeis,  with 
translating,  and  with  the  writing  of  livres  (R  II,  143  ff.,  5329  ff.)  a 
task  which,  to  judge  from  his  half  serious,  half  humorous  account, 

24a  This  work  is  mentioned  apart  from  the  Rou  because  Wace's  authorship  of  it  is 
still  uncertain.    See  Andresen,  G.  Paris,  and  Du  Meril  as  in  next  note. 

For  accounts  of  Wace's  life  and  work  see  Andresen,  H.,  Maistre  Wace's  Roman  de 
Rou  et  des  Dues  de  Normandie,  Heilbronn,  1877,  I,  Einleitung ;  Archer,  T.  A.,  The 
Battle  of  Hastings,  The  Eng.  Hist.  Rev.,  Jan.  1894 ;  Brequigny,  Notices  et  Extraits  des 
MSS  de  la  Bibliotheque  du  Roi,  V,  21  ff . ;  De  la  Rue,  An  Epistolary  Diss,  upon  the  Life 
and  Writings  of  Robert  Wace,  Archeologia  XII  (1706)  50  ff . ;  Diet,  of  Nat.  Biog., 
LVIII,  404;  Du  Meril,  Jahrbuch  fur  rom.  und  eng.  Lit.  I  (1859)  1  ff.,  reprinted  in  his 
Etudes,  1862,  214  ff.  De  la  Rue,  Essais  sur  les  Bardes,  Caen,  1834,  II,  158  ff . ;  Flet- 
cher, op.  cit.  127  ff. ;  GGr  II,  i,  635;  Kloppe,  Recherches  sur  le  Dialect  de  Ouace,  Mag- 
deburg, 1853;  Koerting,  Ueber  die  Quetten  des  Roman  de  Rou,  Leipsig,  1867;  Morley 
H.,  Eng.  Writers  (2nd  ed.)  Ill,  55  ff . ;  Paris,  G.,  Rom.  IX  (1880)  592  ff . ;  Pluquet, 
La  Ghron.  Ascendante  in  Mem.  de  la  Soc.  des  Antiquaires  de  Normandie,  I,  pt.  II,  Caen, 
1825;  Retrospective  Rev.,  II  (1853)  92  ff.;  Round,  J.  H.,  Wace  and  his  Authorities, 
Eng.  Hist.  Rev.,  Oct.  1893;  reprinted  in  Feudal  Eng.,  409  ff . ;  San  Marte,  HRB,  Ein- 
leitung, XXI,  ff. ;  Schofield,  Eng.  Lit.  from  the  Norman  Conquest  to  Chaucer,  New  York, 
1906,  see  Index,  500;  Ward,  H.  L.  D.,  Cat.  of  Romances  in  the  Brit.  Museum,  I,  260. 
The  fullest  accounts  are  those  of  Paris,  Du  Meril,  and  Andresen. 

25  Andresen's  ed.,  vol.  I  contains  pts.  I,  II,  and  the  Chron.  Ascendante;  vol.  II 
consists  of  pt.  III.    References  to  R  II  mean  Rou,  Vol.  II. 

26  G.  Paris,  Rom.  IX,  594,  says  this  means  Paris. 

2T  The  exact  nature  of  this  office  is  as  yet  undetermined. 

28  These  were  Henry  I,  son  of  the  Conqueror,  Henry  II,  and  Prince  Henry,  son  of 
the  latter  who  was  crowned  in  1170  during  his  father's  lifetime,  but  who  died  before  his 
father  in  1183.  See  Stubbs,  The  Early  Plantagenets,  "Epochs  of  Mod.  Hist.,"  ed.  by  E. 
Morris,  N.  Y.,  1891,  81,  103. 


INTRODUCTION 


11 


brought  him  in  more  reputation  than  gold.  One  of  the  works  com- 
posed during  this  period  must  have  been  the  Roman  de  Brut,  for 
Wace  says  at  the  close  of  this  narrative  that  he  finished  it  in  the 
year  1155  (B  15297  ff.).  From  Lapmon 29  we  learn  the  interesting 
detail  that  Wace's  Brut  was  dedicated  to  Eleanor,  wife  of  Henry 
II.30  As  the  Chronique  Ascendant e  states  that  the  Roman  de  Rou 
was  begun  by  Wace  in  1160,  (R  I,  p.  206,  w.  1  ff.)  this  work  too, 
may  have  been  among  the  many  literary  labors  undertaken  at  Caen. 
Wace  was  with  the  court  when  the  bodies  of  Dukes  Richard  I  and 
II  of  Normandy  were  interred  at  Fecamp  (R  II,  2246).  He  was 
made  prebendary  or  canon  of  Bayeux  by  Henry  II,  in  whose  honor 
he  composed  at  least  the  third  part  of  the  Rou  (R  II,  172  ff.,  185  ff., 
5335  f.).  Unhappily  for  the  poet  he  was  not  allowed  to  complete 
his  history  of  the  dukes  of  Normandy.  For  some  reason  which  he 
does  not  divulge,  he  was  compelled  to  stand  by,  and  see  a  certain 
Maistre  Beneeit31  preferred  in  his  place  (R  II,  11481  ff.).  Wace 
felt  tlijs  act  as  an  indignity,  and  the  bitter,  closing  lines  of  the  Rou 
are  a  pathetic  contrast  to  the  earlier  passage  where  he  praises  the 
king  as  a  gracious  patron  (R  II,  167  ff.). 

Evidence  for  the  dates  of  Wace's  canonship  and  death  is  sup- 
plied by  four  contemporary  documents  relating  to  the  history  of 
the  cathedral  of  Bayeux,  three  of  which  bear  the  dates  respectively 
of  1169,  1172,  and  1174.  The  fourth  is  undated,  but  according  to 
Du  Meril 32  it  belongs  to  the  same  period  as  the  dated  charters. 
According  to  this  testimony,  Wace  was  prebendary  of  Bayeux  by 
1169.  Just  when  he  was  appointed  to  this  office  wo  do  not  know.33 
As  no  later  documents  bearing  the  poet's  name  have  yet  come  to 
light,  it  has  been  generally  concluded  that  he  died  shortly  after 
1174. 

Of  the  romances,  translations,  histories,  and  serventeis  upon 
which  Wace  says  he  was  engaged  only  three  aside  from  the  chroni- 
cles have  come  down  to  us.    These  are  short  poems,  all  of  a  reli- 

"The  Brut  ed.  by  Sir  Frederick  Madden,  London,  1847,  I,  3. 
30  For  discussion  of  this  question  see  Paris,  Rom.  IX,  595. 

91  "This  Benoit  has  in  the  past  been  regularly  identified  with  the  well  known  author 
of  the  Roman  de  Troie,  Benoit  de  Ste-More ;  but  the  identification  is  now  questioned." 
Schofield,  op.  ext.,  122.    Cp.  G.  Paris  JdS,  1902,  203,  n.  2. 

82  Op.  cit.,  6. 

M  See  G.  Paris,  Du  Meril,  and  Andresen,  u.  s. 


12 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


gious  character:  La  Vie  de  St.  Nicholas,3*  La  Vie  de  Ste.  Margue- 
rite,35 and  La  Conception  de  la  Vierge.36  Among  the  disputed  ques- 
tions concerning  Wace 's  life  and  work  are :  the  date  of  his  birth, 
put  variously  from  1100  to  1124;  the  authorship  of  the  Chronique 
Ascendante  and  its  relation  to  the  Roman  de  Rou;  and  the  poet's 
social  rank,  Du  Meril  believing  that  his  father  was  a  carpenter,  and 
G.  Paris,  that  Wace  was  of  noble  birth.  These  matters,  however, 
belong  more  properly  to  a  critical  biography  of  Wace,  and  are  aside 
from  the  present  purpose. 

Crestien,  unlike  Wace,  has  eliminated  the  personal  element  so 
completely  from  his  writings,  that  a  discussion  of  his  life  must 
comprise  little  more  than  an  attempt  to  arrange  his  works  in 
chronological  order  and  to  fix  their  dates.  The  accepted  facts  re- 
garding Crestien 's  life  and  works  are  to  be  found  chiefly  in  his 
own  poems.  He  was  a  native,  presumably,  of  Troyes  in  Champagne 
(E  9)37;  he  received  a  scholastic  education;38  was  a  protege  of 
Marie  de  Champagne  39  (L  1  ff.)  ;  and  was  the  author  of  five  Arthur- 
ian romances  in  the  following  order :  Erec,  Cliges,  Lancelot,  Yvain, 
and  Perceval;  probably  a  roman  d'avanture  called  Guillaume  d'An- 
gleterre; 40  a  poem  called  Marc  et  Iseut;  and  some  pieces  based  on 
classic  models,  principally  on  Ovid  (C  1  ff.).  Marc  et  Iseut  and 
the  Ovidiana,41  as  Foerster  calls  them,  are  lost. 

The  extant  poems  can  be  dated  only  approximately :  Perceval 
comes  before  1191  since  it  is  dedicated  to  Philip  of  Flanders  (P  12), 

34  Ed.  by  Monmarque  (Melanges  pub.  par  la  Soc.  des  Bibliophiles  frs.  VII  and  by 
Delius,  Bonn,  1850. 

35  Ed.  by  Joly,  A.,  Paris,  1879  (Extrait  des  Mem.  de  la  Soc.  des  Antiquaires  de 
Normandie),  reviewed  by  P.  Meyer,  Rom.  VIII  (1879)  275  f.  and  Deux  Redactions 
diverses  de  la  Ligende  de  Ste.  Marguerite  en  vers  frs  par  A.  Scheler,  1877,  re- 
viewed by  P.  Meyer,  Rom.  VII  (1878)  339  ff . ;  printed  in  part  by  Delisle,  Rom.  II 
(1873)  93  f.;  reprinted  by  P.  Meyer,  Rom.  VI  (1877)  1  ff.  See  H.  Morley,  op.  ext. 
56  ff. 

38  Ed.  by  Manel  and  Trfibutien,  Caen,  1842,  and  by  Luzarche,  Tours,  1859. 

37  Crestien's  romances  are  referred  to  in  each  case  by  the  initial  letter  of  the  hero's 
name. 

38  Based  on  his  familiarity  with  Ovid  (G  2  ff.,  441  ff.),  his  mention  of  Macrobius, 
and  his  description  of  the  quadrivium  (E  6736,  6741  ff.) 

39  Cf.  Eructavit,  attributed  by  T.  A.  Jenkins  to  Adam  de  Perseigne,  Dresden,  1909. 
The  Eructavit  uses  Madame  de  Champagne  and  la  jantis  seur  le  roi  France  (Philip 
II)  expressions  interpreted  by  H.  Arbois  de  Jubainville  as  referring  to  Marie,  countess  of 
Champagne. 

40  See  p.  1,  n.  * 

41  See  p.  16  &  n.  64. 


INTRODUCTION 


13 


then  living,  who  died  in  1191 ; 42  Yvain,  before  1173  because  it  men- 
tions as  still  living,  the  Saracen  chief,  Noradin  (Y  595)  who  died 
in  that  year;43  Lancelot,  after  1164,  since  it  is  dedicated  to  Marie, 
Countess  of  Champagne  who  did  not  acquire  that  title  until  after 
her  marriage  to  Henry  I,  count  of  Champagne,  in  that  year.44 
For  Erec  and  Cliges  there  are  no  generally  accepted  dates.  The 
order  of  the  romances  is  fixed  by  the  opening  lines  of  Cliges  which 
list  Erec,  the  Ovidiana,  and  Marc  et  Iseut  as  already  written ;  and 
by  the  mention  in  Yvain  3706,  4740  45  of  incidents  in  the  Lancelot. 
Thus  the  three  romances  not  named  in  Cliges  must  have  followed  it 
in  composition,  and  of  these  three,  Perceval  must  be  the  last,  if  we 
accept  the  word  of  Gerbert  de  Montreuil  in  his  continuation  of  the 
Perceval,i6  that  death  prevented  Crestien  from  finishing  his  poem. 
The  Lancelot  also,  Crestien  left  unfinished,  probably  in  order  to 
turn  to  more  congenial  work,  but  it  was  completed,  he  tells  us,  by  his 
friend,  Godfrei  de  Leigny.47 

The  poet  tells  us  that  he  got  some  of  his  source  material  from  his 
patrons .-  Marie  de  Champagne  furnished  him  with  the  sens  and  the 
matiere  for  his  Charrete  (L  1  ff.),  and  Count  Philip  gave  him  the 
Livre  of  the  Grail  story  (P  66).  According  to  the  testimony  of  his 
contemporaries  and  successors,  Crestien  attained  considerable  fame 
in  his  own  day,  and  was  looked  upon  as  a  master.48  "Whether  he 
had  any  other  occupation  than  that  of  letters  is  uncertain,  but  it  is 
generally  agreed  that  the  absence  of  his  name  from  contemporary 
official  documents  points  to  his  rise  from  an  humble  origin.49 

The  lack  of  certainty  in  the  dates  of  the  romances,  together  with 
entire  absence  of  information  on  matters  concerning  the  poet's  life 
has  given  opportunity  for  much  difference  of  opinion.  The  chief 
debatable  questions,  are  the  exact  dating  of  the  works ;  the  author- 
ship of  the  Philomele,  of  Guillaume  d'Angleterre,  and  of  certain 

42  See  C,  3rd  ed.  1910,.  XXI. 

aSee  C,  3rd  ed.  XV.    Paris,  JdS,  1902,  302. 

44  H.  Arbois  de  Jubainville,  Hist,  des  Dues,  et  des  Comtes  de  Champagne,  1861,  III, 

82. 

45  See  E,  1909  ed.  VIII,  n.  2. 
^Potvin  ed.  VI,  212,  Paris,  1866. 

"See  Earrenritter  LXXXVI  and  Paris,  Bom.  XII  (1883)  462. 

48  Holland,  Crestien  von  Troies,  Tiibingen,  1854,  29,  50,  179,  243;  "Large  E," 
XII  ff.;  C,  3rd  ed.,  VI;  E  23;  GGr  I  (1888)  430,  n.  2;  HL  XXX,  25,  143;  JdS,  1902, 
289  fie. 

**JdS,  1902,  203,  n.  4;  C,  3rd  ed.  VI. 


14 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


chansons  once  accepted  unquestionably  as  Crestien's;  whether  the 
poem  which  Crestien  in  Cliges  calls  Marc  et  Iseut,  was  an  episodic 
poem  or  a  long  romance,  and  its  relation  to  Cliges;  finally,  the  poet's 
occupation. 

The  principal  investigations  in  these  and  all  other  matters  con- 
nected with  Crestien's  life  have  been  made  by  Foerster  in  Cliges, 
3rd  ed.  1910,  VI  ff.  and  by  Gaston  Paris  in  the  Journal  des  Savants, 
1902,  302  ff.50 

The  datings  of  Paris  and  Foerster  are  as  follows. 
Foerster  Paris 
1160  ca.  Erec51  1168 

1164  ca.  Cliges  1170  ca. 

1164,  after  Lancelot  1172  ca. 

1173,  before  Tvain  1173-4 

1170,  nicht  zu  spat  nach  Perceval  52  1174-7 
It  is  evident  that  both  Foerster  and  Paris  limit  the  period  of 
composition  for  the  five  romances  to  about  ten  years,  the  only  dif- 
ference being  that  Foerster  sets  the  starting  point  back  eight  years. 
Both  attempt  to  date  the  Erec  from  the  rather  uncertain  evidence 
offered  by  the  three  rornans  d'antiquite,  the  Thebes,  Troie,  and 
£neas,  since  the  Erec  53  mentions  these  works.  They  agree  that  the 
Troy  book,  the  latest  of  the  three,  was  dedicated  to  Eleanor,  wife  of 
Henry  II  of  England,  and  Paris  54  goes  so  far  as  to  say  that  the  na- 
ture of  the  address  points  to  her  having  been  some  time  on  the 
throne.  As  Henry  came  into  power  in  1154,  having  married 
Eleanor  two  years  earlier,  Paris  dates  the  Roman  de  Troie  at  1160 
or  even  later.  But  examination  of  this  so-called  dedication  thrust 
obscurely  into  the  middle  of  the  poem  (13432  ff.,  Soc.  des  anc.  Testes 

50  For  other  discussions  see  G.  Paris,  La  Litt.  francaise  au  Moyen  Age,  4th  ed.  Paris, 
1909,  102;  Esquisse,  110;  HL  XXX,  23;  Bom.  XII,  459  ff. ;  Bom.  XX  (1891)  161;  GGr 
II,  i,  495  ff.;  Holland,  op.  cit. ;  Muret,  Bom.  XVI  (1887)  361;  Suchier,  Birch-Hirschfeld, 
Gesch.  der  franz.  Litt.,  1900,  137  ff . ;  Weehssler,  Die  Sage  vom  heiligen  Gral,  Bonn, 
1898,  146  ff.;  Foerster,  Walter  von  Arras  (ROM.  BIBL.  VII)  I,  p.  XIII  &  n.  22,  XV. 
The  subject  is  treated  to  some  extent  in  nearly  all  the  editions  of  Crestien's  works.  For 
a  good  summary  of  the  question  see  Voretzsch,  op.  cit.,  295  ff. 

61  GGr  II,  i,  498,  "vor  1164."    Lot,  Bom.  XXVIII,  323,  "1160  ca." 

M  Weehssler,  op.  cit,  148,  "1180-1." 

58  The  reference  in  Erec  to  the  Tale  of  Troy  (6844)  is  merely  a  passing  allusion  to 
Helen,  the  source  of  which  may  not  have  been  the  Troy-book;  it  may  have  come  from  the 
£n(as. 

6iJdS,  1902,  303  &  n.  2;  C,  3rd  ed.  XVIII. 


INTRODUCTION 


15 


ed.)  shows,  as  pointed  out  by  Petit  de  Julleville,55  almost  nothing 
upon  which  to  base  an  identification.  Hence,  with  the  date  of  the 
Troy-hook  still  uncertain,  that  work  is  of  little  assistance  in  dating 
the  Erec.56 

Paris  fixed  upon  1172  for  Lancelot  on  the  ground  that  Marie, 
only  nineteen  at  the  time  of  her  marriage,  1164,  would  not  be  likely 
to  hold  the  opinions  on  love  which  she  apparently  gave  over  to 
Crestien  in  the  sens  and  the  matiere  for  the  Charrete.  Foerster 
objects  to  this  view:  "Marie  hat  ja  den  zweiten  Teil  des  Heraklius, 
die  schamlose  Ehebruchgeschichte  der  Athanais,  veranlasst  (6553) 
und  zwar  nicht  lange  nach  ihrer  Hochzeit;  denn  der  H  fallt  um 
1164;"  thus  he  gives  his  reason  for  dating  the  Lancelot  at  1164. 
Neither  is  Bedier's  date  for  the  Tristan  of  Thomas,  1160  or  between 
1155-1170  at  the  outside,57  (and  both  he  and  Paris  58  agree  that 
Cliges  shows  the  influence  of  Thomas)  of  much  assistance  in  fixing 
the  years  for  the  earlier  romances  except  to  demonstrate  that  Cres- 
tien's  literary  career  could  not  have  begun  later  than  1160  and  there- 
fore that  Erec  and  Cliges  must  have  appeared  between  1160-1170. 

Paris  59  assigns  Perceval  to  1174-7  because  at  no  other  period  in 
Count  Philip's  life  was  he  in  a  position  to  receive  the  tribute  paid 
him  by  Crestien.  Foerster  disagrees  with  this  opinion.59  Wechss- 
ler's  dating  for  the  Perceval  is  also  untrustworthy.  He 60  puts  it 
at  1180-1,  the  year  of  Count  Philip's  regency  for  Philip  Augustus 
on  the  assumption  that  the  count  previous  to  that  period  was  not 
sufficiently  prominent  to  have  deserved  Crestien 's  encomium.  Gau- 
tier  d'Espinal,61  however,  mentions  Philip  in  no  uncertain  terms  as 
a  lover  of  poetry ;  from  which  we  may  infer  that  it  was  not  Philip 's 
political  position  alone,  that  brought  him  distinction.  Thus  it  is 
evident  that  attempts  to  give  exact  dates  to  the  romances  have  so 

6C  Hist,  de  la  Litt.  francaise,  I,  197.  Foerster  admits  that  these  lines  may  he  an  in- 
sertion, O,  3rd  ed.  XVIII.  Note  that  the  Arsenal  MS  of  the  Troie,  Soc.  des  Antiquaires 
de  Normandie,  ed.,  Joly,  Paris,  1869,  XXVII,  66,  shows  that  this  passage  is  there  made 
to  refer  to  the  Virgin.  This  looks  as  though  the  allusion  was  originally  so  vague  as  to 
admit  of  an  entirely  different  interpretation  in  a  later  MS. 

56  Foerster's  argument  for  the  date  of  Cliges,  as  Paris  has  already  shown  (JdS,  1902, 
302  f.)  is  not  sound.    Foerster  seems  still  to  hold  the  same  view  (O,  1910,  XX). 

w  Tristan  II,  46,  55. 

M  Op.  cit.,  46  ff.    JdS,  1902,  347  ff. 

**JdS,  1902,  305.    C,  3rd  ed.  XXII. 

M  Op.  cit.,  148. 

41  Brakelmann,  Les  plus  anciens  Chansoniers  de  France,  Marburg,  1896,  13. 


16 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


far  proved  unsatisfactory,  and  that  for  the  present  we  must  be 
content  with  approximate  dates. 

The  Philomele62  is  regarded  as  Crestien's  by  Paris,63  and  re- 
jected by  Foerster.64  The  six  lyrics,  once  considered  unquestion- 
ably the  work  of  Crestien  are  now  rejected  with  the  possible  excep- 
tion of  two.65  The  poem  called  by  Crestien  Marc  et  Iseut  was 
thought  by  Paris  66  to  be  merely  a  short,  episodic  composition  rather 
than  a  long  romance,  since  from  the  title  it  appears  to  have  been  con- 
cerned with  Marc  rather  than  with  Tristan.  Foerster66  takes  the 
reference  to  mean  a  Tristan  romance  which  he  believes  furnished  the 
model  for  Cliges.  He  does  not  acknowledge  Crestien's  indebtedness 
to  Thomas,  but  thinks  the  obligation  lay  the  other  way. 

The  question  whether  Crestien  had  any  other  occupation  than 
that  of  letters  is  regarded  variously.  Paris,67  on  the  basis  of  line 
5591  in  the  Lancelot  holds  that  the  poet  was  a  herald ;  Wechssler,67 
on  the  ground  of  his  frequent  scriptural  allusions  thinks  that  he 
was  a  cleric;  Foerster  disagrees  with  both  of  these  opinions  but 
offers  no  alternative. 

On  the  assumption  that  Perceval  /  shows  no  sign  of  declining 
power  Paris  thinks  that  Crestien  died  about  the  age  of  40,  and  on 
the  basis  of  the  ten  year  period  of  production  for  the  romances  that 
he  began  to  write  about  1160,  at  the  age  of  25.68  This  theory  does 
not  seem  unreasonable. 

62  Ed.,  de  Boer,  Paris,  1909. 

«»J?i  XXIX,  489;  Bom.  XXII  (1893)  271;  Manuel  4th  ed.  83. 
84  C,  3rd  ed.  VII,  See  also  GGr  II,  i,  592. 

65  See  Holland,  op.  cit.,  226  ff.;  Earrenritter  CLXXXII  ff.;  C,  3rd  ed.  XIV. 

66  JdS,  1902,  297  ff . ;  C,  3rd  ed.  XXXIX  ff. 

67  JdS,  1902,  295  &  n.  2 ;  296  nn. ;  Wechssler,  op.  cit.,  146  ff.  Groeber,  Gr  II, 
i,  497,  agrees  with  Paris. 

68  JdS,  1902,  306. 


Chapter  I 

Episodes — Erec,  Cliges 
In  a  study  of  sources  the  first  testimony  to  be  considered  is  that 
of  the  author  himself.  The  story  of  Erec,  Crestien  says  he  took 
from  a  conte  d'avanture  (E  13)  ;  for  Cliges  he  used  un  des  livres  de 
I'aumeire  Mon  seignor  saint  Pere  a  Biauvez  (0  20  f.)  ;  the  sens 
and  the  matiere  for  the  Charrete  he  got,  as  we  have  seen,  from  Marie 
de  Champagne ; 1  for  Yvain  Crestien  does  not  name  a  source ; 2  the 
Perceval  owes  its  being,  as  already  noted,3  to  a  livre  given  the  poet 
by  his  patron,  Philip  of  Flanders.  We  possess  little  definite  knowl- 
edge about  the  character  of  these  sources:  the  conte  d'avanture 
was  probably  an  oral  tale ; 4  the  material  furnished  by  Marie  was 
doubtless  oral 5  in  form  also.  The  term,  livre,  mentioned  in  Cliges 
and  Perceval,  may  have  meant  a  Latin  book.6  The  extent  of  Cres- 
tien's  indebtedness  to  these  originals  it  is  obviously  impossible  to 
estimate.  It  is  not  likely  that  in  any  of  his  romances  he  relied  on 
one  source  alone.  Like  Geoffrey  and  Waee  he  built  up  his  story  out 
of  material  gathered  from  various  channels.  Disregarding  Wace 
for  the  moment,  we  find  Cliges  indebted  in  the  first  part  to  the 
Tristan  of  Thomas,  and  in  the  second,  to  the  Marques  de  Rome 
tale ; 7  the  Charrete  to  an  other-world  abduction  story  and  the 
Lancelot  legend ; 8  and  Perceval  to  the  grail  story  and  the  legend 
of  Gawain,  to  say  nothing  of  other  elements.9    In  view  of  these 

1See  p.  13. 

2  See,  however,  Golther,  ZfS  XXV  (1903)  139,  who  thinks  the  closing  lines  of  Yvain 
point  to  a  conte.    He  cites  also  line  2153.    I  think  the  evidence  is  not  clear. 

3  See  p.  13. 

*E,  2nd  ed.  XXII;  Paris,  Bom.  XX  (1891)  152. 

B  Earrenritter,  XXII,  LXXVI;  Paris,  Bom.  XII,  507,  509,  543;  Golther,  ZfS  XXII 
(1900)  4.    For  other  views  see  Bom.  XII,  485. 

8  The  exact  connotation  of  livre  is  uncertain.  Surely  in  E  6742  it  means  a  Latin 
book,  for  it  there  refers  to  a  work  of  Macrobius, '  but  just  as  surely  in  L  27  it  means 
a  French  romance,  for  there  Crestien  speaks  of  his  own  story,  the  Charrete,  as  his 
livre.  In  O  20,  24,  27,  30,  and  in  P  67  the  use  is  not  quite  so  clear,  but  from  the 
context,  the  reading  "Latin  book"  would  seem  to  be  more  reasonable.  Cp.  OGr  II,  i,  499; 
Paris,  Manuel,  4th  ed.,  102. 

7  Bedier,  op.  cit.,  I,  8,  n.  1;  10,  n.  1',  II,  47.  "Large  0"  XV.  Foerster,  however 
declares  the  first  part  of  C  to  be  "freie  Erfindung,"  C  3rd  ed.  XXXII.  Paris,  JdS,  1902, 
348,  351,  354,  643,  ff . ;  van  Hamel,  Bom.  XXXIII  (1904)  473  ff.  and  B6di«r  are  of  one 
opinion.    Cp.  Golther,  ZfS  XXIV  (1902)  10.' 

8  Earrenritter  XX;  Y,  3rd  ed.  XXI;  Paris,  Bom.  XII,  533  ff. 

9Y,  3rd  ed.  XXI;  Nitze,  PMLA  (N.  S.)  XVII  (1903)  365  ff . ;  and  p.  86  of  this 
study. 


18 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


facts,  *aside  from  the  consideration  that  Crestien's  testimony  may 
indicate  in  a  general  way  either  a  popular  or  a  literary  origin  for  his 
romance,  such  evidence  militates  neither  for  nor  against  Crestien's 
possible  obligation  to  Wace.  In  other  words,  the  theory  that  Cres- 
tien  has  borrowed  from  Wace  would  not  at  all  conflict  with  his  own 
statements  about  his  sources,  or  with  any  indirect  evidence  offered 
by  the  text. 

A  study  of  Crestien's  relation  to  the  Norman  chronicler  may  be 
based  upon  style  (reserved  for  separate  investigation,  see  p.  151, 
n.  32)  and  material  according  to  the  following  categories :  Episodes, 
Characters,  Geography,  Romantic  background,  Social  and  Moral 
ideas.10  The  chronological  order  of  the  romances  has  been  followed, 
partly  for  convenience,  partly  because  this  arrangement  may  throw 
some  light  on  the  development  of  Crestien's  chronicle  borrowings. 
The  method  used  is  to  proceed  with  one  division  at  a  time  through 
all  the  romances,  not  to  treat  each  work  as  a  separate  unit. 

Erec 

The  two  royal  ceremonies  in  Erec}  the  marriage  of  Erec  and 
Enide  and  later,  their  coronation,  events  to  which  the  poet  devotes 
much  careful  attention,  recall  in  many  respects  the  famous  scene 
in  the  Brut,  descriptive  of  the  coronation  of  Arthur  after  his  return 
from  the  campaign  for  the  mastery  of  Britain  and  neighboring  ter-, 
ritory.  The  passages  here  compared  will  be  best  understood  if 
read  with  the  help  of  the  table  on  pages  23  ff. 

The  Roman  de  Brut — the  coronation  of  Arthur.  Cp.  HBB  IX, 
xii-xiv. 

10455  Pur  ses  richeces  demustrer  Manda  ses  reis  e  tuz  ses  euntes, 

E  pur  faire  de  lui  parler,  10500  Manda  ses  dus  e  ses  viscuntes; 

Prist  cunseil,  si  li  fu  loe,  Manda  baruns,  manda  chasez, 

Qu'a  la  Pentecuste,  en  este,  Manda  evesques  e  abez. 

Feist  sun  barnage  assembler  Manda  Frangeis  e  Burguignuns, 

10460  E  dunt  se  feist  curuner  Manda  Auvergnaz  e  Gascuns, 

A  Karliiin,  en  Glamorgan,  Manda  Normanz  e  Peitevins, 

Manda  tuz  ses  baruns  par  ban.  Manda  Mansaus  e  Angevins, 

(The  city  described,  10462-  Manda  Breiban§uns  e  Flamens, 

10497)  Manda  Hanuiers  e  Lorens, 

Tuz  ses  baruns  i  fist  venir.  Manda  Frisuns,  manda  Tieis, 

10  As  these  classes  are  not  always  mutually  exclusive,  occasionally  a  question  prop- 
erly belonging  to  the  geographical  division,  for  instance,  must  be  treated  in  connection 
with  episodes  or  characters.    There  is,  however,  a  separate  chapter  on  geography. 


EPISODES 


19 


10510  Manda  Noreis,  manda  Daneis. 
Manda  Escoz,  manda  Ireis, 
Manda  puis  les  Islandeis, 
Manda  puis  les  Cateneis, 
Manda  puis  les  Gotlandeis, 
[Et?]Manda  ceus  de  Galewee 
Manda  ceus  qui  tindrent  Or- 
canee ; 

10519  D'Escoce  i  vint  reis  Aguisel, 


10521  De  Moreif  Uriens  li  reis, 
E  Yvains  ses  filz  li  curteis. 
Loth  de  Loeneis  i  vint 
Qui  mult  grant  part  de  la  curt 
tint ; 

10525  Avuec  lui  vint  Gawains  ses  filz 
Qui  mult  esteit  frans  e  gentilz. 


10588  E  Kex  qui  esteit  quens  d'An- 
giers, 

E  Beduiers  de  Neiistrie 
Que  Turn  or  claime  Normandie. 
The  city  all  a'bustle  with  prepa- 
ration, 10609-10635. 

10635  Al  matin,  al  jur  de  la  feste, 
Ce  dist  l'estoire  de  la  geste, 
Li  vindrent  tuit  li  arcevesque 
E  li  abe  e  li  evesque. 
El  palais  le  rei  curunerent 
E  a  l'eglise  le  menerent: 
Dui  arcevesque  le  menoent 
Qui  a  ses  dous  costez  aloent; 
Chascuns  un  braz  li  susteneit 
De  si  qu'a  sun  siege  veneit. 

10645  Quatre  espees  i  ot  a  or, 

Que  punt,  que  helt,que  entretor, 
Quatre  reis  ces  quatre  portoent 
Qui  par  devant  Artur  aloent; 
Cist  mestiers  lur  aparteneit, 

10650  Quant  li  reis  Artus  curt  teneit. 
Cil  d'Escoce,  cil  de  Susguales, 
E  li  tierz  esteit  de  Norguales; 
Cador  de  Cornuaille  esteit 
Qui  la  quarte  espee  teneit. 
N'aveit  pas  menurs  disnitez 
Que  se  il  fust  reis  curunez. 
Dubric  qui  de  Rome  ert  legaz, 


E  de  Karliiin  ert  prelaz 
Emprist  a  faire  le  mustier 
10660  E  ce  esteit  en  sun  mestier. 
La  re'ine  par  grant  esgart 
Fu  servie  de  l'altre  part. 
Devant  la  feste  aveit  mandees 
E  a  cele  curt  assamblees 
Les  granz  dames  de  eel  pais. 


10670  Pur  cele  feste  maintenir 
En  se  chambre  fu  curunee, 
E  el  temple  as  nunains  menee. 
(Confusion  at  the  churches, 
10673-  ) 
10695  As  processiiins  a,  grant  presse, 
Chascuns  d'aler  devant  s'en- 
gresse 


10703  Mult  veissiez  par  ces  mustiers 
Aler  e  venir  chevaliers, 


10715  Quant  li  services  est  finez, 
E  Ite  missa  est  chantez, 
Li  reis  a  sa  curune  ostee 
Qu'il  aveit  al  mustier  portee; 
Altre  curune  menur  prist 
10720  E  la  re'ine  ansement  fist; 

Jus  mistrent  les  greignurs  aturs, 
Plus  legiers  pristrent  e  menurs. 
Quant  li  reis  partit  del  mustier 
En  sun  palais  ala  mangier. 
According  to  the  Trojan  cus- 
tom, the  men  and  women  eat 
in  separate  apartments,  10725- 
36 

10737  Quant  li  reis  fu  al  deis  assis, 
,    A  la  custume  del  pais, 
Assis  sunt  li  barun  entur, 

10740  Chascuns  en  l'ordre  de  seignur, 
Li  seneschals  Kex  aveit  nun 
Vestus  d'un  vermel  siglatun 
Cil  servi  al  mangier  le  rei; 
Mil  dameisiaus  aveit  a.  sei 
Qui  esteit  vestu  d'ermine, 
Cil  serveient  de  la  quisine; 

10749  Beduiers,  de  l'altre  partie 
Serveit  de  la  bottellerie: 


20 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


10783  Jan'i  vei'ssiez  chevalier 

Qui  alques  feist  a  preisier, 
Qui  armes  e  dras  e  atur 
N'eiissent  tut  d'une  culur. 
D'une  culur  armes  aveient 
E  d'une  culur  se  vesteient; 
S'i  esteient  dames  prisiees 

10790  D'une  culur  apareilliees 
Ne  ja  chevalier  n'i  eust 
De  quel  parage  que  il  fust, 
Ja  peiist,  en  tute  sa  vie, 
Aveir  bele  dame  a  amie 
Se  il  n'eiist  avant  este 11 
De  chevalerie  pruve 

10801  Quant  li  reis  leva  del  mangier 
Ale  sunt  tuit  esbaneier; 
De  la  cite  as  chans  issirent. 
As  pluisurs  gius  se  departirent: 
Li  un  alerent  bohorder 
E  lur  isnels  chevals  pruver. 
Li  altre  alerent  escremir, 
Ou  piere  jeter,  ou  salir. 
Tels  i  aveit  qui  darz  lancoent 

10810  E  tels  i  aveit  qui  jetoent. 

Chascuns  del)  geu  s'entremeteient 
Dunt  entremetre  se  saveient. 


Laws  of  the  game,  ladies  as 

spectators,  etc.,  10813-22 
10823  Mult  ot  a  la  curt  jugleiirs 
Chanteiirs,  estrumanteurs ; 
Mult  po'issiez  oi'r  chancuns, 
Rotruenges  e  novels  suns, 
Vieleiires,  lais,  e  notes, 
Lais  de  vieles,  lais  de  notes; 
Lais  de  harpe  e  de  fretels; 
10830  Lyres,  tymbres  e  chalemels, 
Symphonies,  psalteriuns, 
Monacordes,  cymbes,  choruns, 
Assez  i  ot  tresgiteiirs, 
Jueresses  e  jueiirs; 
Li  un  dient  cuntes  e  fables. 
Alquant  demandent  dez  e  tables : 
Tels  i  a  juent  a  hazart, 
Ce  est  uns  geus  de  male  part. 
As  eschas  juent  li  plusur, 
10840  Al  geu  del  mat  ou  al  meillur. 

Description  of  the  games  in 

progress,  10841-66. 
10867  Treis  jurz  dura  la  feste  issi. 

Quant  vint  al  quart,  al  merceedi, 
Li  reis  les  dameisels  fieva, 
Honurs  delivres  lur  duna. 

Enumeration  of  the  gifts, 

10871-10900. 


On  turning  to  Erec,  we  find  that  shortly  before  Crestien  brings 
Erec  and  Enide  to  Arthur's  court  to  be  married,  he  gives  a  list  of 
knights  of  the  Round  Table  then  attendant  upon  the  king.  We 
may  thus  infer  that  they  were  present  at  the  ceremony  even  though 
they  are  not  mentioned  in  the  formal  list  of  guests.  Therefore  this 
catalogue  passage  may  be  properly  connected  with  that  describing 
the  marriage. 


Erec  1687  Mes  d'auquanz  des  mellors 
barons 

Vos  sai  je  bien  dire  les 
nons, 

De  gaus  de  la  Table 

Reonde, 
Qui  furent  li  mellor  del 

monde. 


Devant  toz  les  buens  che- 
valiers 

Doit  estre  Gauvains  li  pre- 
miers, 


1706  Et  Yvains,  li  fiz  Uriien. 
1735  . .  Beduiers,  li  conestables, 


11  Se  il  n'  eiist  iii.  fois  este 
De  chevalerie  esprouve.  MS  du  Roi,  7515  M,  Colb. 


EPISODES 


21 


1739  .  .li  fiz  Keu,  le  seneschal, 
The  Wedding 

1923    Li  rois  le  don  li  otroia 

Et  par  son  reaume  anvoia 
Toz  les  rois  et  les  contes  querre, 
Caus  qui  de  lui  tenoient  terre; 
Que  nul  tant  hardi  n'i  eiist 
Qu'a  la  pantecoste  ne  fust. 
N'i  a  nul  qui  remenoir  ost, 
Que  a  la  cort  ne  vaingne  tost, 
Desque  li  rois  les  ot  mandez. 
Je  vos  dirai,  or  m'antandez! 
Catalogue  of  guests 

1970    Vint  Aguisiaus,  li  rois  d'Escoce, 


2012    Li  rois  Artus  a  la  parsome, 

Quant  assanble  vit  son  barnage, 
Mout  an  fu  liez  an  son  corage. 
Apres  por  la  joie  angreignier 
Commanda  gant  vaslez  beignier; 
Que  toz  les  viaut  chevaliers  feire. 
N'i  a  nul  qui  n'et  robe  veire 
De  riche  paile  d'Alixandre 

2020    Chascuns  tel  come  il  la  vost 
prandre 
A  s'eslite  et  a  sa  devise. 
Tuit  orent  amies  d'une  guise. 


2032    L'arcevesques  de  Cantorbire, 
Qui  a  la  cort  venuz  estoit, 
Les  benei'  si  come  il  doit. 
Quant  la  corz  fu  tote  assanblee, 
N'ot  menestrel  an  la  contree, 
Qui  rien  seiist  de  nul  deduit, 
Que  a  la  cort  ne  fussent  tuit. 
An  la  sale  mout  grant  joie  ot, 

2040    Chascuns  servi  de  ce  qu'il  sot: 
Cil  saut,  cil  tume,  cil  anchante, 
Li  uns  conte,  li  autre  chante, 
Li  uns  sifle,  li  autre  note, 
Cil  sert  de  harpe,  cil  de  rote, 
Cil  de  gigue,  cil  de  viele, 
Cil  flaiite,  cil  chalemele. 
Puceles  carolent  et  dancent, 
Trestuit  de  joie  feire  tancent. 
N'est  riens  qui  joie  puisse  feire 


2050    Et  cuer  d'ome  a  leesce  treire, 
Qui  ne  fust  as  noces  le  jor. 
Sonent  timbre,  sonent  tabor, 
Muses,  estives  et  frestel, 
Et  buisines  et  chalemel. 
Que  diroie  de  l'autre  chose? 
N'i  ot  guichet  ne  porte  close. 
Les  issues  et  les  antrees 
Furent  totes  abandonees; 
N'an  fu  tornez  povres  ne  riches. 

2060    Li  rois  Artus  ne  fu  pas  chiches: 
Bien  comanda  as  panetiers 
Et  as  queus  et  as  botelliers 
Qu'il  livrassent  a  grant  plante 
A  chascun  a  sa  volante 
Et  pain  et  vin  et  veneison. 
Nus  n'i  demanda  livreison 
De  rien  nule,  queus  qu'ele  fust, 
Qu'a  sa  volante  ne  l'eiist. 
The  wedding  night,  2069-2108 
Gifts  for  those  assisting  in  the 
festivities,  2109-18. 

2119    Einsi  les  noces  et  la  corz 

Durerent  pres  de  quinze  jorz 
A  tel  joie  et  a  tel  richesce. 
Por  seignorie  et  por  hautesce, 
Et  por  Erec  plus  enorer, 
Fist  li  rois  Artus  demorer 
Toz  les  barons  une  quinzainne. 
Quant  vint  a  la  tierce  semainne 
Tuit  ansanble  comunement 
Anpristrent  un  tornoiemant. 
The  two  days'  tournament, 
2129-2278. 
The  Coronation  of  Erec  and 
Enide 

6546    Apres  li  pria  et  dist 

(Erec  asks  Arthur  to  crown  him 

at  his  own  court.) 
Qu'il  le  coronast  a  sa  cort. 
Li  rois  li  dist  que  tost  s'atort; 
Que  corone  seront  andui, 
II  et  sa  fame  ansanble.  o  lui, 
A  la  natevite  qui  vient; 
Et  dist:  "Aler  vos  en  covient 
De  ci  qu'a  Nantes  an  Bre- 

taingne ; 
La  porteroiz  real  ansaingne, 


22 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Co  rone  el  chief  e  ceptre  el  poing  ; 
Cest  don  et  ceste  enor  vos  do- 
tag." 


6559    A  la  natevite  ansanble 

Li  rois  toz  ses  barons  assanble, 
Trestoz  par  un  et  les  mande, 
A  Nantes  venir  les  comande; 
Toz  les  manda:  nus  n'i  remaint. 
Those  who  go  are  not  named 
here.  Later,  a  few  nationali- 
ties are  mentioned. 
6644    De  mainte  diverse  contree 
I  ot  contes  et  dus  et  rois, 
Normanz,  Bretons,  Escoz,  Irois; 
D'Angleterre  et  de  Cornoaille 
I  ot  mout  riche  baronaille 
Que  des  Gales  jusqu'  an  Anjo, 
6650    Ne  el  Mainne  ne  an  Peito 

N'ot  chevalier  de  grant  afeire 
Ne  jantil  dame  de  bon  eire, 
Que  les  mellors  et  les  plus 
j  antes 

Ne  fussent  a  la  cort  a  Nantes, 
Si  con  li  rois  les  ot  mandez. 
Arthur's   generosity  beggars 
that  of  Alexander  the  Great 
and  of  Caesar,  6655-85. 
Preparation  for  the  ceremo- 
ny —  description    of  Erec's 
coronation  robe,  6686-6810. 
Enide  is  led  into  the  palace 
by  Oawain  and  the  king  of 
Gavoie,  6826  ff. 
6831    Quant  eles  vindrent  el  pales, 
Contre  eles  vint  a  grant  esles 
Li  rois  Artus,  et  par  franchise 
Lez  Erec  a  Enide  assise; 


6836    Maintenant  comande  fors  treire 
Deus  corones  de  son  tresor, 
Totes  massices  de  fin  or. 
Description  of  the  crowns, 
6839-53.  ' 
6854   L'une  fist  prandre  a  deus  puce- 
les, 

Et  l'autre  a  deus  barons  tenir. 


Puis  comanda  avant  venir 
Les  evesques  et  les  prieus 
Et  les  abez  religieus, 
Por  enoindre  le  novel  roi 
6860    Selonc  la  crestiiene  loi. 

Maintenant  sont  avant  venu 
Tuit  li  prelat,  juene  et  chenu; 
Car  a  la  cort  avoit  assez 
Venuz  evesques  et  abez. 
L'evesques  de  Nantes  mei'smes, 
Qui  mout  fu  prodon  et  saintis- 
mes, 

Fist  le  sacre  del  roi  novel 
Mout  saintemant  et  bien  et  bel, 
Et  la  corone  el  chief  li  mist. 
6870    Li  rois  Artus  aporter  fist 

Un  ceptre  qui  mout  fu  loez. 

Description  of  the  sceptre, 

6871-83. 

6884    Si  li  mist,  qui  plus  ne  tarda, 

Le  roi  Erec  an  sa  main  destre; 
Or  fu  il  rois  si  con  dut  estre. 
Puis  ra  Enide  coronee. 
Ja  estoit  la  messe  sonee, 
Si  s'an  vont  a  la  mestre  eglise 
Oi'r  la  messe  et  le  servise; 
A  l'eveschie  s'an  vont  orer. 
Joy  of  Enide's  parents  over 
the  event,  6892-97 

6898    Quant  il  vindrent  a  l'eveschie, 
Ancontr'aus  s'an  ist  tote  fors 
O  reliques  et  o  tressors 
La  processions  del  mostier. 
Croiz  et  textes  et  ancansier 
Et  chasses  atot  les  cors  sainz, 
Dont  il  ot  an  l'eglise  mainz, 
Lor  fu  a  l'ancontre  fors  tret, 
Ne  de  chanter  n'i  ot  po  fet. 
Onques  ansanble  ne  vit  nus 
Tant  rois,  tant  contes  ne  tant 
dus 

Ne  tant  barons  a  une  messe, 
6910    Si  fu  granz  la  presse  et  espesse, 
Que  toz  an  f  u  li  mostiers  plains. 
Onques  n'i  pot  antrer  vilains, 
Se  dames  non  et  chevalier. 
Defors  la  porte  del  mostier 


EPISODES 


23 


An  i  remest  ancor  assez: 
Tant  an  i  avoit  amassez, 
Qui  el  mostier  antrer  ne  porent. 
Quant  tote  la  messe  o'ie  orent, 
Si  sont  el  pales  retorne. 


Voie  antre  les  tables  avoir. 
A  chascune  table  por  voir 
Avoit  ou  roi  ou  due  ou  conte, 
E  gant  chevalier  tot  par  conte 
A  chascune  table  seoient. 
Mil  chevalier  de  pain  servoient, 
Et  mil  de  vin,  et  mil  de  mes, 
Vestu  d'ermins  pelicons  fres. 
De  mes  divers  sont  tuit  servi: 


6920    Ja  fu  tot  fet  et  atorne, 


Tables  mises,  a  napes  sus: 
Cine  ganz  tables  i  ot  et  plus; 
Mes  je  ne  vos  vuel  feire  acroire 
Chose,  qui  ne  sanble  estre  voire. 
Manconge  sanbleroit  trop  granz, 
Se  je  disoie  que  cine  ganz 
Tables  fussent  mises  a  tire 
An  un  pales,  ja  nel  quier  dire; 


6953    Mout  lor  done  largemant 


Chevaus  et  armes  et  arjant, 
Dras  et  pailes  de  mainte  guise, 
Por  ce  qu'il  est  de  grant  fran- 


thur 


When  the  guests  depart,  Ar- 


6930    Ainz  an  i  ot  cine  sales  plainnes, 


Si  qui  I'an  pooit  a  granz  pain- 


chise 

Et  por  Erec  qu'il  ama  tant. 


nes 


From  these  passages  from  the  Brut  and  the  Erec  the  table  below 
has  been  made  to  show  the  details  of  agreement.12 

1.  The  ceremony  was  performed  at  a  royal  residence. 

B  10461,  Carlion 

E-W  28,  Caradigan  13 

E-C  6553,  6563,  Nantes  an  Bretaingne 

PC  (Matthew  Paris)14  London 

2.  It  took  place  on  a  fete  day. 

B  10458,  Pentecost 

E-W  1928,  Pentecost 

E-C  6551,  6559,  6584,  Christmas  Day 

PC  (Matthew  Paris)  15  Sept.  3,  1188 

3.  Summons  of  all  the  baronage  and  clergy  of  the  realm. 

B  10461,  10497 
E-W  1924  ff. 
E-C  6560  ff. 
PC  II,  1 


12  The  abbreviations  here  used  are:  B,  Brut;  E-W,  Erec-wedding;  EC,  Erec-corona- 
tion;  PC,  prose  chronicles.    The  last  item  is  to  be  disregarded  for  the  present. 

13  The  story  opens  with  the  court  at  Caradigan,  and  except  for  the  hunting  expe- 
dition, sometime  after  the  marriage,  3942  ff.,  there  is  no  indication  of  a  change  until 
line  6584. 

11  Schultz,  Das  hofische  Leben  zur  Zeit  der  Minnesinger,  Leipzig,  1889,  I,  643. 
15  Schultz,  I,  643.    This  does  not  seem  to  be  a  special  day.    See,  however,  this  study, 
p.  33  and  note  25. 


24 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


5. 


6. 


A  list  of  the  guests. 
B  19499  ff. 
E-W  1933  ff. 
E-C  6568  i,  6644  ff. 
PC 

The  summons  is  answered  by  all. 
B  10597  ff. 
E-W  1929  ff. 
E-C  6563 
PC 

The  ceremony  is  performed  by  the  highest  ecclesiastics  in  the 


PC  (Matthew  Paris)16  The  archbishop  of  Canterbury 
The  order  of  exercises. 

a.  The  coronation  takes  place  in  the  palace. 

B  10369 

E-W  No  indication  that  it  was  anywhere  else. 

E-C  6831 

PC 

b.  The  prelate  anoints  the  king  with  the  sacred  oil. 

B 

E-W 

E-C  6856  ff. 
PC  III,  10 

c.  The  prelate  places  the  crown  on  the  king's  head. 

B  10637  ff. 

E-W  The  couple  are  blessed  by  the  archbishop,  2032  ff. 
E-C  6869 
PC  III,  15 

d.  The  queen  is  crowned  in  the  same  manner  as  the  king. 

B  10661  ff. 
E-W 
E-C  6887 
PC  II,  10 


realm. 


B  10637  ff., 
E-W  2032 
E-C  6865 


Dubricius,  archbishop  of  Canterbury 
L 'arcevesques  de  Cantorbire 
L'evesques  de  Nantes 


16  Schultz,  I,  644.    See  also  p.  30,  item  15. 


EPISODES 


25 


e.    The  procession  goes  to  the  church  to  hear  mass. 

1.  The  clergy  and  nobility,  bearing  the  regalia,  precede 
the  king. 

B  10645  ff. 
E-W 

E-C  6855  ff. 
PC  III,  1  ff. 

2.  The  king  is  supported  by  a  prelate  on  either  side. 
B  10641  ff. 

E-W 
EC 

PC  III,  7 

3.  They  hear  mass  at  the  church. 
B  10695  ff. 

E-W 

E-C  6888  ff. 
PC  III,  17 

4.  The  throngs  at  the  church  are  very  great. 
B  10695  ff. 

E-W 

E-C  6907  ff. 
PC 

8.    After  mass  they  return  to  the  palace  for  the  banquet. 
B  10715 

E-W  2060  ff.   There  is  no  returning,  but  there  is  a  feast. 
E-C  6918  ff. 
PC  III,  18  f . 

a.  The  king  removes  his  heavy  ceremonial  crown  for  a 
lighter  one,  before  going  to  the  feast. 

B  10718  ff. 

E-W 

E-C 

PC  III,  19 

b.  The  guests  are  seated  according  to  rank. 

B  10737 
E-W 

E-C  6032  ff.   Rank  not  clearly  indicated. 
PC  III,  19 " 


26 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


c.  They  are  waited  upon  by  the  high  barons  of  the  realm. 

B  10741  ff. 
E-W 

E-C  6936  f. 
PC  II,  8  f. 

d.  Those  who  serve  are  dressed  in  ermine. 

B  10744  f. 
E-W 

E-C  6936  ff. 
PC 

e.  The  knights  of  Arthur's  court  wear  their  arms  all  of  the 
same  fashion. 

B  10783 
E-W  2022 
E-C 
PC 

9.    Diversions  of  various  kinds  follow  the  banquet.. 
B  10801  ff. 

E-W  2035  ff.    The  games  seem  to  precede  the  feast, 

but  the  time  order  is  not  clearly  indicated. 
E-C 
PC 

After  a  survey  of  this  table  it  requires  little  effort  to  see  the 
apparent  imitation  of  the  Brut  by  the  author  of  Erec.  But  here 
the  question  naturally  arises :  has  Crestien  for  these  descriptions 
borrowed  from  a  written  source,  or  is  he  simply  reflecting  the  cus- 
toms of  the  day?  This  leads  us  to  examination  of  documents  de- 
scribing the  marriage  and  coronation  ceremonies  of  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury. 

1.  Marriage  ceremonies. 
Schultz  (op.  cit.,  624)  says  that  from  the  eighth  century  the 
church  began  to  insist  upon  the  religious  element  in  marriage  func- 
tions, that  they  should  be  performed  by  a  priest.  Frequently,  mar- 
riage had  taken  place  with  almost  no  ceremony  and  without  an 
ecclesiastic  17  (Schultz  I,  621).  He  cites  in  confirmation  the  Sermo 
Synodalis,  1009  (Hartzheim  III,  3)  :  "  Omnibus  annunciate,  ut 
nullus  uxorem  accipiat  nisi  publice  celebratis  nuptiis."    The  eele- 

17  Cp.  Perceval  (Baist)  2523  ff. 


EPISODES 


27 


bration  was  often  on  the  most  magnificent  scale.  In  1243  when 
Count  Richard  of  Poitiers,  the  brother  of  Henry  III  of  England, 
married  in  London  the  daughter  of  Count  Raymond  of  Provence, 
there  were  prepared  for  the  guests  30,000  plates  (Schultz  I,  626)  : 
"in  coquinali  ministerio  plura  quam  triginta  millia  ferculorum 
prandentibus  parabantur. ' ' 

In  the  year  1252  when  at  York  Henry  III  of  England  married 
his  daughter  to  the  king  of  Scotland,  the  archbishop  sent  as  a 
present  60  oxen,  and  these  furnished  but  a  single  course :  "ex  dono 
archiepiscopi  in  ipso  convivio  plusquam  sexaginta  boves  pascuales 
unum  ferculum  primitivum  in  generale  perf ecerunt. "  (Schultz 
1,626). 

Not  only  were  guests  invited  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  but 
all  sorts  of  persons  were  asked  to  assist  in  the  entertainment. 
Matthew  Paris,  describing  the  wedding  of  Henry  III  of  England, 
says:  "Convenerunt  autem  vocata  ad  convivium  nuptiarum  tanta 
nobilium  multitudo  utriusque  sexus,  tanta  religiosorum  numerosi- 
tas,  tanta  plebium  populositas  tanta  histrionum  varietas,  quod  vix 
eos  civitas  Londoniarum  sinu  suo  eapaci  comprehenderet. " 
(Schultz  I,  627). 

It  was  the  custom  in  France  for  the  bridal  bed  to  be  blessed  by~ 
the  priest.  Aye  d' Avignon,  p.  127 :  "Quant  vint  a  l'avespre  qui  fu 
apres  souper  et  on  fet  dame  Aye  en  sa  chambre  mener,  lui  et  le 

roi  Ganor  L'evesque  va  l'estole  a  son  col  afubler;  lor  lit  vint 

beneir  le  soir  apres  souper.  Puis  on  fet  la  chambre  vidier  por 
reposer."  Durmars  15155:  "Li  evesques  de  Limeri  senga  lor  lit 
et  beni. "  Blonde  of  Oxford  4771:  "Li  prestre  benei  leur  lit." 
Of.  Berthe  p.  19,  23;  Cliges  3330;  Claris  29659;  Le  Fraisne  416 
(Schultz  I,  632,  n.  7).   See  also  Perceval  (Potvin,  VI,  206). 18 

Usually  the  court  ladies,  friends  of  the  bride,  accompanied  her 
to  the  chamber  and  prepared  her  for  bed.    (Schultz  I,  633). 

It  was  customary  for  the  host  to  give  many  and  valuable  pres- 
ents: "Et  post  prandium  transmissit  dominus  rex  Angliae  magna- 
tibus  ad  hospitia  sua  Francigensis  nobiles  cuppas  argehteas,  firma- 
cula  aurea,  cingula  servica  et  alia  et  alia  donativa,  prout  decuit 
talem  regem  dare  et  tales  primates  gratanter  recipere. "  (Matthew 

18  The  above  are  not  political  documents,  but  for  accounts  of  purely  social  events 
they  are  often  the  only  source  of  information.  See  Critchlow,  F.  L.,  On  the  forms  of 
betrothal  and  wedding  ceremonies  in  the  old  Roman  d' Adventure,  Baltimore,  1903.  Not 
consulted. 


28  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Paris — Sehultz  I,  637).  This  occasion  was  when  Henry  III  of  Eng- 
land visited  Louis  IX  of  France  in  1254. 

These  citations  point  to  contemporary  life  as  a  possible  foun- 
dation for  a  number  of  incidents  in  the  Erec  marriage  ceremony: 
the  presence  of  the  archbishop,19  and  his  officiation,  Enide's  being 
crowned  presumably  in  the  same  manner  as  Erec,  the  elegance  of 
the  feast,  the  character  of  the  amusements,  the  presence  of  the 
prelates  in  the  bedchamber,  the  queen's  preparing  Enide  for  bed, 
and  the  rich  gifts  bestowed  by  Arthur  on  guests  and  on  those  fur- 
nishing the  entertainment.  Hence  Crestien's  description  may  have 
been  derived  in  some  measure  from  his  knowledge  of  the  customs  of 
his  day. 

2.    The  coronation  ceremony. 

The  material  examined  for  accounts  of  coronations  is  as  fol- 
lows :  I,  The  Becueil  des  Historiens  des  Gaules  et  de  la  France  par 
les  Beligieux  Benedictins  de  la  Congregation  de  St.  Maur,  IX, 
for  the  years  877-991,  describing  the  coronation  of  Louis  le  Begue 
of  France;  II,  "Williston  "Walker,  The  Increase  of  Boyal  Power  in 
France  under  Philip  Augustus,  1179-1223,  Leipzig,  1888,  describ- 
ing the  two  coronations  of  Philip  Augustus,  accounts  based  on 
Benedict  of  Peterborough  (1169-1192),  Roger  of  Hovenden  (1170- 
1192),  The  Becueil,  etc.;  Ill,  Benedict  of  Peterborough,  confirmed 
by  Matthew  Paris  reporting  the  coronation  of  Richard  I  of  Eng- 
land. The  excerpts  from  these  documents  are  entitled  "PC  I, 
II,  III, ' '  respectively  in  the  table  on  pp.  23  ff .  These  particular  ac- 
counts have  been  chosen  because  they  show  that  in  the  space  of 
300  years  the  order  of  exercises  has  remained  practically  the  same, 
and  hence  must  have  been  pretty  generally  known  to  persons  within 
reach  of  such  functions.  By  again  referring  to  the  table  and  in- 
cluding in  the  comparison  the  items  lettered  PC,  we  shall  see 
that  both  Wace's  and  Crestien's  descriptions  bear  a  strong  re- 
semblance to  the  historical  accounts.  Benedict  of  Peterborough's 
narrative  has  been  selected  for  the  table  because  it  is  the  fullest, 
but  occasionally  an  omission  has  been  supplied  from  another  his- 
torian as  indicated. 

19  E  2071  ff.    These  linea  are  not  set  down  in  the  table  because  they  refer  dis- 
tinctly to  the  wedding. 


\ 


EPISODES 


29 


I.  From  the  Recueil  IX,  300. 

The  coronation  of  King  Ludovicus  performed  by  the  Arch- 
bishop Hincmaro  in  the  year  877. 
The  order  of  exercises. 

1.  Petitio  Episcoporum. 

2.  Promissio  Regis. 

3.  Benedictiones  super  Hludowicum  Regem  factae. 

4.  Sacri  olei  infusio. 

5.  Impositio  coronae. 

6.  Septri  traditio. 

7.  Benedictiones. 

II.  W.  Walker,  the  coronation  of  Philip  Augustus,  op.  ext.,  9  f. 

1.  Summons  of  the  nobles  of  the  realm  to  be  present  at  the 

crowning. 

2.  The  time— All  Saints'  Day,  Nov.  1,  1179.. 

3.  The  usage  of  the  Capetian  house  was  followed  in  that  the 

crowning  was  in  the  hands  of  the  primate  at  Rheims. 

4.  The  ceremony  was  performed  in  the  usual  fashion,  by 

anointment  with  the  sacred  oil,  and  the  imposition  of 
the  crown. 

5.  A  brilliant  assembly  of  nobles.   Prominent  were  Henry, 

son  of  Henry  II  of  England;  and  Philip,  Count  of 
Flanders. 

6.  Henry  bore  the  crown  to  be  placed  on  the  king 's  head. 

7.  Philip  of  Flanders  carried  the  sword  before  the  monarch. 

8.  Philip  possibly  fulfilled  the  office  of  seneschal  at  the 

banquet. 

9.  Other  nobles  whose  names  have  not  been  recorded  did 

the  lesser  services  of  the  festal  day. 
10.    The  second  coronation  occurred  after  the  marriage  of 
Philip  to  Elizabeth  of  Hainault  (1180).  At  this  coro- 
nation the  same  ceremony  was  performed  upon  the 
queen  as  upon  the  king.  Walker,  op.  cit.,  13. 

III.  Benedict  of  Peterborough,  The  Chronicle  20  of  the  Reigns  of 
Henry  II  and  Richard  I,  1169-1192,  p.  80. 

20  Commonly  known  under  the  name  of  Benedict  of  Peterborough,  ed.  from  the  Cot- 
ton MSS  by  Wm.  Stubbs,  II,  London,  1867.  Also,  Gesta  Regis  Henrici  Secundi  Bene- 
dicti  Abbatis,  Master  of  the  Rolls  Series. 


30 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


1.  Procession  of  the  clergy. 

2.  Two  persons  follow,  bearing  the  cap  and  spurs. 

3.  Two  earls  with  scepter  and  rod. 

4.  Three  earls  with  swords. 

5.  Six  counts  and  barons  with  the  regalia. 

6.  Two  bearing  the  crown. 

7.  Richard,  under  a  canopy,  supported  on  either  side  by  a 

bishop. 

8.  Richard  makes  three  oaths. 

9.  He  is  undressed  and  shod. 

10.  He  is  anointed. 

11.  He  is  dressed  in  consecrated  garments. 

12.  The  sword  is  delivered  to  him. 

13.  The  spurs  and  mantle  are  put  upon  him. 

14.  The  adjuration  at  the  altar. 

15.  The  coronation  by  the  bishop. 

16.  He  is  conducted  to  the  throne  and  seated  between  the 

bishops  who  led  him  in  procession. 

17.  He  hears  mass. 

18.  He  returns  to  his  chamber. 

19.  The  banquet. 

Interim  rex  deposuit  coronam  suam  et  vestes  regales  et 
leviores  coronam  et  vestes  sumpsit :  et  sic  coronatus  venit 
prandere.  Et  archiepiscopi  et  episcopi,  et  abbates,  et  alii 
clerici  sedebant  cum  eo  in  mensa  sua,  unusquisque  sec- 
undum ordinum  et  dignitatem  suam.  Comites  vero  et 
barones  et  milites  sedebant  ad  alias  mensas  et  epulaban- 
tur  splendide. 

After  a  consideration  of  these  passages,  B,  E-W,  E-C,  and  PC, 
it  is  obvious  that  Crestien  is  indebted  for  his  ceremonies  neither  to 
Wace  alone  nor  to  social  customs  alone,  but  probably  to  both.  The 
features  he  may  have  borrowed  from  the  Brut  are : 

1.  The  names  of  certain  guests. 

2.  The  practice  by  Arthurian  knights  of  wearing  their 

arms  all  of  one  fashion. 


EPISODES 


31 


3.  Having  the  coronation  held  in  the  palace,  followed  by  a 

procession  to  the  church  to  hear  mass,  instead  of  the 
usual  form  of  having  both  the  coronation  and  the 
mass  performed  in  the  church.21 

4.  The  three  thousand  nobles  clad  in  ermine  who  waited  at 

the  royal  banquet. 
Now,  to  discuss  these  points  in  detail.  In  the  catalogue  of 
knights  above  mentioned  (p.  21)  there  occur  the  names  Gawain, 
Yvain  the  son  of  Urien,  Kay  the  Seneschal,  and  Bedver  the  Butler. 
Gawain  (see  pp.  110  ff.)  may  already  have  attained  sufficient  dis- 
tinction to  merit  a  mention  here  independent  of  chronicle  influ- 
ence, but  Yvain  the  son  of  Urien  probably  owes  his  reputation  to 
Wace.  Geoffrey  mentions  Yvain  but  once,  and  briefly.22  Wace 
adds  him  to  Geoffrey's  list  of  coronation  guests,  and  calls  him  U 
cortois  (10522).  Later,  in  the  passage  parallel  to  that  in  the  HRB, 
Wace  enlarges  upon  Geoffrey's  statement  (13595).  It  is  signifi- 
cant that  Kay  and  Bedver,  Kay  always  first,  are  almost  invariably 
mentioned  together  in  the  Brut.23  Bedver 's  name  does  not  occur 
in  any  other  of  Crestien's  romances.  Among  the  wedding  guests 
is  Auguisiaus,  king  of  Scotland  (1970).  He  also  is  a  coronation 
guest  in  the  Brut  (10519),  is  later  a  prominent  figure  in  the  war 
with  Rome  (11236,  11431,  12762),  and  his  death,  together  with  that 
of  Gawain,  causes  Arthur  much  sorrow  238  (13550).  This  instance, 
too,  marks  the  only  occurrence  of  the  name  in  Crestien's  works. 
The  similarity  of  phrasing  in  the  two  passages  may  also  be  noted : 
B  10519,  D'Escoce  i  vint  reis  Aguisel;  E  1970,  Vint  Aguisiaus,  li 
rois  d'Escoce.  (See  p.  79).  Therefore,  the  mention  of  the  names 
Yvain,  Kay,  Bedver,  and  Aguisel  would  seem  to  indicate  that  Cres- 
tien  had  these  lines  of  Wace  in  mind  when  he  wrote  of  the  marriage 
of  Eree. 

The  Arthurian  practice  of  wearing  arms  all  of  one  fashion  seems 
to  have  originated  with  Geoffrey  (IX,  xiii).    Wace  follows  his 

21  Gervaise  of  Canterbury  (Schultz,  I,  645)  states  that  Richard's  second  coronation, 
April  17,  1194,  took  place  in  the  palace,  and  that  afterwards  he  went  to  the  church  for 
mass,  but  as  far  as  I  have  discovered,  this  does  not  seem  to  be  the  usual  custom.  So 
for  the  present  I  regard  this  feature  in  Crestien's  account  as  a  borrowing  from  Wace. 

22  See  p.  99  and  HRB  XI,  i. 

23  B  II,  pp.  92,  101,  107,  146,  152,  192,  201,  203,  218.  Bedver  is  mentioned  sep- 
arately seven  times  and  Kay,  not  at  all.    See  pp.  95  ff.  of  this  study. 

238  See  p.  112. 


32  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

original,  as  usual  elaborating  the  idea  somewhat  (10783),  and  is 
probably  responsible  for  Crestien's  use  of  it  in  Erec. 

An  examination  of  historical  documents  shows  that  coronations 
were  usually  performed  in  the  church  and  not  in  the  palace. 
Crestien  seems  to  have  followed  Wace  in  having  the  ceremony  per- 
formed in  the  palace,  and  in  taking  the  assembly  to  the  church  af- 
terwards to  hear  mass. 

Both  Wace  and  Crestien  have  groups  of  noble  persons  to  wait 
at  the  royal  banquet.  In  the  Brut  they  are  damoisiaus  (10744)  •  in 
Erec  they  are  chevalier  (6936).  "With  Wace,  Kay  and  Bedver  have 
1000  each:  one  group  to  serve  the  meats,  the  other  to  pour  the 
wines.  Crestien  has  three  groups  of  1000  each :  one  to  serve  bread, 
the  other  meats,  and  the  third,  wines.  This  great  retinue  was  clad 
in  ermine.  The  texts  do  not  say  that  their  garments  were 
trimmed  with  the  fur,  but  that  the  attendants  were  vestu  d' ermine 
B  10745,  E  6938).  Ermine,  together  with  Russian  sable,  was 
the  costliest  fur  in  use  in  the  Middle  Ages.24  It  was  employed  ex- 
tensively for  trimming,  but  never  except  for  royalty  was  it  com- 
monly used  for  a  whole  garment ;  nor  is  it  likely  that  several  thous- 
and persons  serving  at  a  banquet,  even  were  they  of  rank,  would  be 
so  expensively  clad.  Crestien  was  doubtlessly  following  his  lite- 
rary source  here,  rather  than  describing  what  was  actually  the 
custom. 

The  one  feature  of  Erec's  coronation  that  does  not  seem  to 
be  taken  from  Wace  is  significant :  the  anointing  of  the  king.  Wace 
says  simply  that  the  archbishops  and  bishops  crowned  the  king 
(10639).  In  the  actual  coronation  the  anointing  was  one  of  the 
important  parts  of  the  ceremony  and  is  mentioned  in  every  docu- 
ment consulted.  Hence  Crestien's  use  of  this  detail  seems  to  point 
to  his  knowledge  of  contemporary  usage.  It  is  quite  possible,  how- 
ever, that  Wace  did  not  omit  this  detail,  but  that  its  absence  at 
present  is  due  to  a  defective  text. 

As  for  the  other  points,  it  appears  that  both  Wace  and  Cres- 
tien were  probably  writing  from  their  own  knowledge,  direct  or 
indirect,  of  contemporary  life.  Items  1,  3,  5,  and  6,  of  the  table  (p. 
23  ff.)  need  no  discussion.  2.  It  was  customary  to  hold  such  events 

24  Schultz,  I,  357.    Perceval  (Baist)  1777. 


EPISODES 


33 


on  a  fete  day.25  4.  A  catalogue  of  names  is  a  convention  found 
everywhere  in  chronicles,  epics,  and  romances.  7  a,  c,  d,  e,  8  a,  b, 
c,  and  9  are  conventional  incidents  of  the  ceremony.26  Schultz 
(I,  551)  describes  nearly  all  of  the  musical  instruments  mentioned 
by  Wace  and  Crestien,  and  shows  cuts  of  several. 

The  acrobatic  feats  are  those  in  fashion  in  that  day,  and  the 
other  diversions  such  as  combats,  juggling,  singing,  dancing,  and 
the  telling  of  tales  were  amusements  common  to  every  court.  The 
giving  of  gifts  by  the  host  on  the  occasion  of  a  great  festivity  both 
to  guests  and  to  those  furnishing  the  talent  was  very  common,  as 
generosity,  largesce,  was  considered  one  of  the  cardinal  virtues.21 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  for  at  least  two  picturesque  details 
"Wace  seems  to  have  drawn  upon  the  customs  of  the  times.  He 
says  that  the  king  was  supported  in  procession  by  a  prelate  on 
either  side  (10641),  and  that  after  mass  the  king  exchanged  his 
heavy,  ceremonial  crown  for  a  smaller  and  lighter  one  before  going 
to  dine  (10715).  These  details  are  mentioned  by  all  three  of  the 
chroniclers  who  describe  the  coronation  of  Richard  I  of  England 
(Schultz,  I,  643). 

These  documents  have  been  quoted  not  so  much  to  show  that 
Wace  and  Crestien  may  have  had  access  to  like  material,  as  to 
point  out  the  character  of  the  marriage  and  coronation  ceremonies 
of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  hence,  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  Crestien 
and  his  original  are  here  reflecting  in  great  measure,  contemporary 
life.  Indeed,  in  a  discussion  of  Crestien 's  sources,  realism  is  an 
element  constantly  to  be  reckoned  with.  Romancer  though  he  is, 
his  love  of  specific  detail  often  leads  him,  perhaps  unconsciously, 
to  throw  light  on  the  manners  and  customs  of  his  day.  This  habit 
is  evident,  as  we  have  seen,  in  the  account  of  the  marriage.  A 
realistic  feature  worthy  of  note  in  the  coronation  passage  is  the 

25  Charlemagne  crowned  emperor,  Christmas  day,  800. 
William  the  Conqueror  crowned  king  of  England  Christmas  day,  1066. 
Stephen  crowned  on  St.  Stephen's  day,  1135. 
John  crowned  on  Ascension  day,  1199. 

Philip  Augustus  crowned  king  of  France,  All  Saint's  day,  1179. 

38  7  b,  and  8  d  and  e  have  already  been  disposed  of  (p.  31  f.)  Cp.  Bedier,  op.  cit. 
I,  p.  278,  v.  430  ff.  This  whole  passage,  the  marriage  of  Tristan  and  Ysolt  as  Blanches 
Mains,  though  meager,  might  be  compared  to  the  Erec  wedding  passage. 

27  For  the  largesce  of  Marie  de  Champagne,  see  Jenkins,  T.  A.,  Eructavit,  Dresden, 
1909  (Gesellsch.  f.  Rom.  Lit.,  Bd.  20),  p.  VIII,  and  vv.  9  f.  For  that  of  Henry  II  of 
England,  see  p.  11  of  this  study.  See  also  Gautier,  Les  Epopies  francaises,  Paris,  1878- 
82,  II,  128  ff. 


34 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


elaborate  description  of  Erec's  robe,  embroidered  with  the  symbols 
of  the  quadrivium  (6736  ff.).  The  idea  of  introducing  such  a 
picture  may  have  originated  in  the  portrayal  of  the  chariot  of 
Amphiaras  in  the  Roman  de  Thebes  (ed.,  Constans,  Paris,  1900,  I, 
p.  230,  vv.  4711  ff.),  but  the  substance  may  also  reflect  the  poet's 
scholastic  education.28 

Cliges 

In  Cliges  with  its  literary  origin,29  we  may  expect  to  find  a 
closer  adherence  to  source  books  than  in  Erec  with  its  Celtic  other- 
world  coloring.  Wace's  Brut  seems  to  have  been  used  here,  not 
as  the  basis  of  one  or  two  episodes,  as  in  Erec,  but  as  the  source 
of  one  of  the  two  principal  actions  composing  the  first  part  of  the 
romance,  namely:  the  love  story  of  Alexander  and  Soredamors, 
and  the  treachery  of  Count  Angres.  The  two  threads  are  con- 
nected in  the  fact  that  the  rebellion  is  introduced  technically  for  the 
purpose  of  allowing  Alexander  to  win  his  spurs  and  thus  become 
worthy  of  the  hand  of  Soredamors.  The  story  of  Angres 's  treason 
finds  a  close  parallel  in  that  of  Modred  toward  Arthur  in  the  Brut.so 
According  to  Crestien,  not  long  after  Alexander  arrives  at  Arthur's 
court  the  king  decides  to  visit  Brittany,  committing  his  island 
kingdom  to  his  trusted  vassal,  Angres  of  "Windsor. 
422    Li  roi  Artus  an  eel  termine 

S  'an  vost  an  Bretaingne  passer. 

Toz  ses  barons  fet  amasser, 

Por  consoil  querre  et  demander, 

A  cui  il  porra  comander 

Angleterre  tant  qu'il  revaingne, 

Qui  la  gart  an  pes  et  maintaingne. 
A  similar  act  is  performed  by  the  Arthur  of  the  Brut,  when 
on  the  eve  of  his  departure  for  the  war  with  Rome  he  intrusts  his 
realm  to  Modred. 

28  See  p.  12,  n.  38. 
w  See  p.  17  and  n.  7. 

80  After  working  out  the  parallels  in  the  Brut  and  the  Cliges  passages  I  discovered 
in  a  dissertation  by  R.  Thedens,  Li  Chevaliers  as  Deus  Espees  in  seinem  Verhaltnis  zu 
seinen  Quellen,  insbesondere  zu  den  Romanen  Crestiens  von  Iroyes,  Gottingen,  1908, 
126  ff.,  that  the  principal  points  of  agreement  had  been  cited  in  a  supplement.  But  as 
Thedens  has  merely  tabulated  the  passages  without  discussion,  and  has,  in  fact,  omitted 
some  features,  not  only  in  the  passage  in  question,  but  in  other  places  in  Cligbs  where 
there  may  have  been  borrowings  from  the  Brut,  it  seems  necessary  that  the  whole  subject 
be  given  careful  investigation. 


EPISODES 


35 


11452    A  Modret,  un  de  ses  nevuz, 
Chevalier  mervillus  e  pruz, 
Livra  en  garde  Artur  sun  regne, 
E  dame  Genievre  sa  f  enne. 
Modrez  esteit  de  grant  noblei, 
Mais  n  'aveit  mie  bonne  f  ei ; 
Geoffrey  says  merely:  Comperto  igitur  adventu  ipsorum  Ar- 
turus,  Modredo  nepoti  suo  ad  conservandum  Britanniam,  atque 
Guanhumarae  reginae  committens,  cum  exereitu  suo  portum  Ham- 
onis  adivit.    X,  ii. 

He  gives  no  hint  of  the  man's  perfidy.  Wace  differentiates  him 
at  once:  Modred  is  mervillus  e  pruz,  de  grant  noblei,  mais  n'aveit 
mie  bonne  fei.  Thus  we  are  immediately  prepared  for  the  treachery 
that  subsequently  comes  to  light.    Crestien  says  at  this  point: 

429    Par  le  consoil  a  toz  ansanble 

Fu  eomandee,  ce  me  sanble, 

Au  conte  Angres  de  Guinesores; 

Car  il  ne  cuidoient  ancores 

Qu'il  eiist  baron  plus  de  foi 

An  tote  la  terre  le  roi. 
Obviously,  Angres  31  is  Modred.    Like  Wace,  Crestien  at  once 
identifies  the  man:  Car  il  ne  cuidoient  ancores  qu'il  eiist  baron 
plus  de  foi.    Ancores  is  the  keyword  here.    Crestien  understood 
the  value  of  suspense,  a  device  apparently  unappreciated  by  Wace, 

31  Crestien's  use  of  the  name,  Angres,  is  confined  to  this  one  romance.  In  the  com- 
pound, Kanelangres,  it  occurs  in  the  Tristan  of  Thomas,  (Bedier,  I,  2)  "Son  nom  etait 
Rivalin,  son  surnon  Kanelangres."  Professor  B6dier  adds  in  a  note  (2):  "Le  sornom 
Kanelangres  reste  mysterieux,  malgre'  plusieurs  tentatives  d'interpretation.  La  forme 
Kanelangres  (cf.  Angres  dans  Cliges)  semble  atteste  par  la  rime  Kanelangres:  des, 
chez,  Gottfried  [de  Strasbourg]  v.  321-2."  Kanel,  Zimmer  (Rom.  XXVII,  1898,  610) 
explains  as  the  place  whence  Rivalin  is  supposed  to  have  come,  and  he  connects  it  with 
Carlisle, — Kanouel,  Karduel,  Carlisle;  but  this  does  not  explain  Angris.  (See  also  Gol- 
ther,  Tristan  und  Isolde.  .  .  .Leipzig,  1907,  143).  It  occurs  to  me  that  the  name  Angres 
may  possibly  be  explained  as  an  adjective  used  substantively,  for  the  meaning  of  the 
term  is  quite  appropriate  to  the  character  of  this  person.  Godefroi  lists  among  others, 
the  foil,  meanings  for  this  word:  "1.  Avec  un  nom  de  personne.  .  .  .facheux,  importun, 
genant,  difficile,  acharni,  entete",  opinidtre,  ardant,  courrouce',  violent.  2.  Engres  est 
quelquesfois  pris  dans  un  sens  tout  a  fait  defavorable,  et  signifie  mSchant,  cruel,  sceUrat, 
impie.  3.  Noms  propres:  Langres-eis,-ais,  Lengrais."  Unfortunately,  G.  gives  no  examples 
under  this  last  heading.  It  is  clear  that  the  epithets  above  listed,  while  appropriate  to  Count 
Angres,  are  not  at  all  suited  to  Kanelangres.  If  Crestien's  use  of  the  name  is  not  de- 
pendent upon  Thomas,  and  it  is  not  necessary  that  it  should  be,  it  does  not  seem  unrea- 
sonable to  conclude  that  the  Angres  of  Cliges  is  a  proper  name  derived  from  an  adjective. 
In  Yvain,  angres  is  used  as  an  attribute  of  persons;  838,  1092. 


36 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTEEN  DE  TROIES 


in  this  instance,  else  he  would  not  at  the  outset  have  uncovered  his 
villain  so  boldly  with  his  mais  il  n'aveit  mie  bonne  fei. 

In  the  Brut,  Modred  is  pruz  e  mervillos.  The  Brut  MS  du  Boi 
7515  3-3-  Colbert  renders  w.  11453  f.  by:  Artus  sa  terre  commando, 
Un  chevalier  qu'il  mult  ama.  Angres  is  chosen  regent  par  le  con- 
soil  a  toz  ansamble.  Thus  the  parallel  is  continued  in  the  fact  that 
both  Modred  and  Angres  have  the  confidence  of  their  king. 

A  departure  from  the  chronicle  is  now  made  by  Crestien  in 
regard  to  the  queen's  part  in  the  affair.  Wace  not  only  says  that 
Arthur  left  the  kingdom  in  charge  of  both  Guinevere  and  Modred, 
but  emphasizes  at  length  the  fact  that  part  of  the  regent's  treach- 
ery lay  in  his  conduct  with  her,  (11452-11469).  In  Cliges,  accord- 
ing to  the  demands  of  the  story,  the  queen  accompanies  Arthur  to 
Brittany.  Crestien  selects  his  material  with  care :  Alexander  is  the 
hero  of  this  part  of  the  story,  and  the  queen  is  necessary  in  order 
to  bring  the  hero  and  heroine  together.  Furthermore,  it  is  in  this 
affair  with  Angres  that  Alexander  wins  his  reputation.  The 
prowess  of  Alexander  must  be  the  theme,  a  theme  to  which  the 
rebellion  of  Angres  must  be  in  a  measure  subordinated.  Final- 
ly, Crestien  is,  in  Cliges,  exploiting  the  idea  of  honorable  love,  in 
contrast  to  that  of  the  Tristan  story.  Thus  it  is  highly  important 
that  the  queen  should  be  presented  as  irreproachable,  since  she 
brings  about  the  union  of  the  hero's  parents.32 

In  Cliges,  nothing  of  historical  import  occurs  during  Arthur's 
sojourn  in  Brittany ;  Crestien  is  busied  during  this  interval  with  the 
tribulations  and  transports  of  the  lovers.  Then  comes  the  news  of 
Angres 's  disaffection,  the  account  of  which  occupies  practically  all 
the  rest  of  the  Alexander  romance.  Wace's  story  of  Modred 's  per- 
fidy runs  thus : 

13419    En  este  volt  Munt  Griu  passer 

E  a  Rome  quida  aler ; 

Mais  Mordrez  Ten  a  retorne, 

Oiez  quel  hunte  e  quel  vilte : 

Ses  nies,  filz  sa  sorur  esteit 

E  en  garde  Bretaigne  aveit ; 

Tut  sun  regne  li  ot  livre, 

A  garde  li  ot  commande, 

32  See  van  Hamel,  Bom.  XXXIII,  465;  C,  3rd  ed.  XXXIX,  and  this  study,  61,  100  ff. 


EPISODES 


37 


E  Mordrez  li  volt  tut  tolir, 

Assez  le  delist  mieuz  servir, 

De  tuz  les  humes  prist  umages, 

E  de  tuz  les  ehastels  ostages. 

Apres  ceste  grant  f  elonie 

Fist  encor  foreur  vilenie, 

Que  euntre  chrestiane  lei 

Prist  a  sei  la  feme  le  rei ; 

Feme  sun  uncle,  sun  seignur 

Prist  a  feme,  s'in  fist  s'oissur. 
Wace  goes  on  to  relate  (13437  ff.)  how  Arthur,  leaving  Hoel  to 
restore  peace  in  France  and  Burgundy,  hurries  back  to  Britain,  ac- 
companied by  the  kings  of  the  islands,  to  wreak  vengeance  upon 
the  traitor.  Modred,  reinforced  by  700  ship-loads  of  Saxons,  meets 
Arthur  on  his  landing  at  Komenel 33  (13485).  In  the  battle  that 
follows,  Gawain,  the  king's  nephew,  and  Aguisel,  king  of  Scot- 
land, are  slain  (13506  ff.).  Arthur  follows  the  traitor  to  Win- 
chester (13559),  drives  him  out,  and  causes  him  to  flee  into  Corn- 
wall (13593).  Guinevere,  hearing  of  Modred 's  fate,  flees  to  Carlion 
where  she  shuts  herself  up  in  a  convent,  never  to  be  heard  of  more  34 
(13628).  Pursued  into  Cornwall,  the  traitor  is  overtaken  at 
Camblan  35  where  the  battle  begins  with  great  fury.  Here  Modred 
and  the  king  fall,  together  with  many  of  Arthur's  choicest  knights 
(13672),  and  Arthur,  having  received  a  mortal  stroke,  is  carried 
to  Avalon  to  be  healed  of  his  wounds  (13681  ff.). 

Crestien 's  narrative  is  as  follows :  While  Arthur  and  his  court 
are  in  Brittany  word  comes  that  Angres  has  broken  faith : 
1062    Et  s'avoit  ja  grant  ost  mandee 

De  sa  jant  et  de  ses  amis, 

Si  s  'estoit  dedanz  Londres  mis 

Por  la  cite  contretenir,  * 

Quel  ore  qu'il  delist  venir. 

33  Romney,  near  the  present  New  Romney  on  the  coast  of  Kent.  Geoffrey  says 
Rutupi  (Richborough),  also  in  Kent,  about  12  miles  north  of  Dover. 

34  Contrast  Geoffrey  and  Wace  in  their  portrayal  of  Guinevere  all  through  this 
episode.  G.  observes  her  from  the  ecclesiastical  point  of  view  and  sits  in  judgment  upon 
her;  W.,  imbued  with  the  ideas  of  chivalry,  treats  her  as  one  to  be  pitied  rather  than 
condemned,  laying  the  blame  on  Modred  rather  than  on  her.  HRB  X,  xiii;  XI,  i; 
B  13421  ff.  See  p.  8  of  this  study. 

85  See  Annales  Cambriae,  "537,  Battle  of  Camblann  in  which  Arthur  and  Medraut 
fell."    See  also,  p.  3,  n.  15,  of  this  study. 


38  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Arthur,  troubled  and  angered,  blames  his  barons  for  choosing 
such  a  regent  as  Angres  who  is  worse  than  Granelon  (1076),  and 
commanding  every  able-bodied  man  in  Brittany  to  follow  him,  sets 
sail  for  England.  Crestien  indulges  in  some  epic  glorification  as 
to  the  size  of  Arthur's  fleet,  a  matter  on  which  the  chronicle  is 
silent  (G  1096  ff.). 

The  king's  army  lands  and  encamps  on  the  shore;  the  port  is 
not  mentioned.  Later,  they  move  on  to  London  (1211).  No  battle 
occurs  at  the  port,  as  in  the  Brut,  but  the  effect  upon  the  usurper 
is  the  same  in  both  accounts:  Modred,  having  lost  the  battle,  de- 
serted by  his  men,  refused  admittance  to  London,  s'enfui  tute  nuit 
(13537)  ;  and  Angres,  with  Arthur  returned,  the  majority  of  the 
people  loyal  to  the  king,  his  own  force  held  together  only  by 
bribes  and  promises,  and  he,  himself,  hated  by  many,  apparently 
fears  to  risk  a  battle  and,  like  Modred,  flees  par  nuit  (1218). 
That  they  both  escape  by  night  may  not  be  significant,  since  that 
was  the  usual  time  for  flight.  Modred  fled  from  Romney,  Angres, 
from  London.  Crestien  may  have  chosen  London,  partly  because 
of  its  prominence;  partly  because  Wace  speaks  of  London  as  a 
place  where  Modred  would  have  taken  refuge  had  he  been  ad- 
mitted. 

Before  Angres  left  London  he  took  with  him 
1223    De  vitaille,  d'or  et  arjant, 
Si  depart!  tot  a  sa  jant. 
and  word  is  brought  to  Arthur  that  Angres 
1228    . .  tant  avoit  de  vitaille 

Et  d 'avoir  pris  an  la  cite, 

Qu'apovri  et  deserte 

Sont  li  borjois  et  confondu. 

The  Brut  does  not  offer  quite  so  close  a  parallel  here,  but  Modred 's 
behavior  at  "Winchester  when  he  took  feautez,  ostages,  e  seurtez 
(13545  f.)  from  the  citizens  at  least  shows  tyrannical  treatment 
and  may  have  furnished  Crestien  with  his  idea. 

Angres,  unable  to  get  a  foothold  elsewhere,  retreats  to  his  own 
domain,  Windsor,  where  Arthur  besieges  him  and  forces  a  battle, 
just  as  the  Arthur  of  the  Brut  compels  Modred  to  take  issue  with 


EPISODES 


39 


him  at  Winchester  36  (13561).    The  behavior  of  the  traitors  when 
each  sees  himself  surrounded  by  the  royal  army  is  much  the  same : 
B  13563    Mais  quant  Mordrez  esgarda  Tost 
Qui  la  cite  envirun  clost, 
Semblant  fist  que  se  cumbatreit, 
E  que  cumbatre  se  voleit; 
Car  se  lungement  ert  assis 
N'en  partireit  qu'il  ne  fust  pris; 
II  sot  bien  s'Artus  le  teneit  * 
Que  ja  vis  n'en  eschapereit. 
Tuz  ses  humes  fist  asambler 
E  tut  isnelement  armer, 
Par  cunreis  les  fist  establir 
E  a  cumbatre  fors  issir. 
We  observe  here  (1)  that  Arthur  will  never  leave  the  stronghold 
until  he  has  taken  it;   (2)  Modred  knows  that  he  may  expect  no 
mercy  if  he  falls  into  the  king's  hands;  (3)  both  besieged  forces 
plan  to  sally  forth  and  make  a  sudden  attack  upon  the  enemy, — 
all,  ideas  that  find  an  echo  in  the  passage  from  Cliges: 
1504    Li  cuens  Angres  est  mout  marriz, 
Quant  anviron  son  chastel  voit 
Trainer  caus  que  chiers  avoit. 
Et  li  autre  mout  s'an  esmaient, 
Mes  por  esmai  que  il  an  aient 
N'ont  nul  talent  que  il  se  randent. 
Mestiers  lor  est  qu  'il  se  deff andent ; 
Car  bien  mostre  li  rois  a  toz 
Son  mautalant  et  son  corroz, 
Et  bien  voient,  s'il  tes  tenoit, 
Qu'a  honte  morir  les  feroit. 

A  little  later : 

1648    Li  traitor  sont  a  consoil, 

Qu'il  porront  feire  et  devenir. 
Lone  tans  porront  contretenir 
Le  chastel,  e'est  chose  certaine, 

36  It  may  be  noted  that  Crestien  mentions  Winchester  twice  in  this  part  of  the 
romance,  not,  however,  in  connection  with  this  particular  episode  (291,  302).  In  no 
other  poem  does  Crestien  locate  Arthur  at  Winchester.  The  geography  of  Cliges  is  de- 
cidedly historical.    See  p.  124,  n.  20;  pp.  125,  129. 


40 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Se  au  deffandre  metent  painne; 
Mes  tant  sevent  de  fier  eorage 
Le  roi,  qu'an  trestot  son  aage 
Tant  qu'il  l'et  pris  n'an  torn  era; 
Adonc  morir  les  convendra. 
Et  se  il  le  chastel  li  randent, 
Por  ce  mile  merci  n'atandent. 

Then  the  besieged  decide : 

1664    Que  demain  ainz  que  jors  apeire 

Istront  del  chastel  a  celee, 

Si  troveront  l'ost  desarmee. 
Though  the  conventionality  of  war  plays  some  part  in  these  ac- 
counts, Crestien's  lines  are  reminiscent  of  the  Brut  passage.  Per- 
haps the  least  conventional  detail  is  Arthur's  reputation  for  stick- 
ing at  a  thing  until  he  has  accomplished  it.  This  is  a  trait  pos- 
sessed by  Uther,  Arthur's  father,  a  characteristic  well  known  to 
the  older  king 's  enemies : 

B  8625    Quar  bien  saveit,  e  veirs  esteit, 
Que  de  quanque  il  enprandreit 
A  bon  chief  vendreit  a  la  fin. 
Crestien  may  have  known  this  passage  but  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
Wace's  description  of  Arthur's  pertinacity  would  of  itself  have 
furnished  him  a  basis  for  his  lines. 

Another  incident  in  the  war  with  Angres  finds  a  parallel  in 
the  Brut:  Alexander's  maiden  exploit  under  the  walls  of  "Wind- 
sor. Just  after  Arthur's  army  has  reached  Windsor,  the  Greek 
prince,  watching  with  eager  eyes  some  of  the  enemy  idly  tilting 
on  the  farther  bank  of  the  Thames,  calls  his  followers  about  him 
and  addresses  them  thus: 

1290    "Seignor,"  fet  il,  "talanz  m'est  pris, 

Que  de  l'escu  et  de  la  lance 

Aille  a  caus  feire  une  acointance, 

Qui  devant  nos  behorder  vienent. 

Bien  voi  que  por  mauves  nos  tienent 

Et  po  nos  prisent,  ce  m'est  vis, 

Quant  behorder  devant  noz  vis 

Sont  ci  venu  tuit  desarme. 

De  novel  somes  adobe: 

Ancor  n'avomes  fet  estrainne 


EPISODES 


41 


A  chevalier  ne  a  quintainne. 

Trop  avons  noz  lances  premiers 

Longuemant  gardees  antieres. 

Nostre  escu  por  quoi  furent  fet? 

Ancor  ne  sont  troe  ne  fret. 

C  'est  uns  avoirs  qui  rien  ne  vaut, 

S'an  estor  non  ou  an  assaut, 

Passons  le  gue,  ses  assaillons!" 

Tuit  dient:  "Ne  vos  an  faillons." 
In  the  Brut  on  the  eve  of  the  war  with  Rome,  Arthur  sends  legates 
to  the  Roman  camp :  among  them  is  Gawain  with  a  band  of  brave 
companions.  As  they  go,  the  youths  urge  Gawain  to  pick  a 
quarrel  with  the  foe  that  they  may  have  a  chance  to  distinguish 
themselves : 

12074    Li  messagier  s'en  returnerent; 

Sur  lur  meillurs  chevals  munterent, 

Escuz  saisiz,  helmes  laciez, 

Haubers  vestuz  e  pris  espiez. 

Dunt  vei'ssiez  maint  chevalier 

Et  maint  vallet  pru  e  legier 

Qui  a  Gauvain  vunt  cunseillant 

E  a-  cunseil  li  vunt  mustrant, 

Que  la  ou  il  va  a  la  curt, 

Face  tel  chose,  ainz  qu'il  s'en  turt, 

Que  la  guerre  seit  cumenciee 

Qui  tant  a  este  manaciee : 

Turne  sereit  a  malvaistie 

Quant  il  tant  se  sunt  apruchie 

S'aucune  cause  n'en  fe'issent, 

E  cil  dient  que  si  ferunt, 

La  bataille  cumencerunt.  1 
In  both  eases  the  youths  are  to  provoke  the  enemy  and  precipitate 
the  battle;  in  both  companies  there  is  shown  the  same  daredevil 
impatience  to  win  renown,  to  bring  on  the  battle  maugre  the  con- 
sequences; both  parties  carry  out  their  plans,  and  start  the  con- 
flict. Alexander  and  his  friends  leap  the  ford,  and  are  upon  the 
nonchalant  tilters  before  they  can  protect  themselves,  and  the 
Greeks  take  back  to  camp  four  prisoners  (1317  ff.).  Gawain,  on 
reaching  the  Roman  camp,  offers  defiance  to  the  emperor  (12116  ff.) 


42 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


and  then  slays  the  emperor's  nephew,  Quintilian,  who  took  offence 
at  his  insults  (12148  ff.).  The  angered  Romans  fly  to  arms,  and 
a  great  battle  ensues,  into  which,  when  Arthur  hears  the  report, 
he  sends  reinforcements.  Finally,  the  foes  are  driven  back  and 
the  British  heroes  return  with  their  prisoners  (12480).  Another 
connection  between  the  episodes  lies  in  the  relationship  existing 
between  the  chief  actors.  Gawain  is  Arthur's  sister's  son;,  Alex- 
ander who  marries  Gawain's  sister,  may  here  be  emulating  his 
brother-in-law.37  Lastly,  Arthur,  both  in  Cliges  and  in  the  Brut 
shows  his  approval  of  the  exploit  in  substantial  rewards.  (C  1452 
ff. ;  B  12481  ff.) 

There  is  some  conventionality  about  these  episodes,  to  be  sure, 
but  it  is  not  so  much  the  conventionality  of  mere  war  as  of  chival- 
ry, of  romance.  The  romantic  spirit  of  the  Brut  can  not  be  insisted 
upon  too  strongly.  As  it  was  shown  in  the  introduction  (pp.  6  ff.) 
is  shown  here,  and  will  be  constantly  pointed  out,  "Wace's  Brut, 
especially  in  the  Arthurian  portion  is  the  forerunner  of  chivalric 
romance.  Hence  Gawain's  exploit  offers  a  model  for  such  affairs 
as  that  of  Alexander,  and  later,  for  that  of  Cliges  where  he  attacks 
the  Duke  of  Saxony's  men  in  the  Black  Forest  (5408  ff.),  and  for 
that  kind  of  combat  generally  to  which  a  poet  resorts  when  he 
wants  to  distinguish  his  hero  in  a  company  already  distinguished. 
Thus  Crestien  may  be  indebted  to  Wace  for  the  romantic  concep- 
tion of  the  incident.  (See  p.  145  f.). 

The  other  episodes  to  be  discussed  fall  in  the  Cliges  part  of 
the  story.  The  first  is  the  four  days'  tournament  held  on  the 
plains  of  Oxford,  in  which  Cliges  wins  his  great  name,  appearing 
each  day  in  armor  of  a  different  color,  unhorsing  Sagremors, 
Lancelot,  Perceval,  and  meeting  his  match  only  in  Gawain. 
(4585  ff.).   What  is  the  source  of  this  incident? 

Miss  Weston,  in  her  monograph  entitled  The  Three  Days'  Tour- 
nament,38 has  shown  that  a  combat  of  three  days'  duration,  in 
each  engagement  of  which,  the  hero  in  order  to  win  the  hand  of  a 
lady,  appears  in  arms  of  a  different  color  and  is  successful  over 
his  opponent,  is  a  story  widely  current  in  folk  literature  from 
Greece  to  Great  Britain.39    On  this  basis  she  argues  that  in  the 

87  B  9872  ff.;  O  467,  2361  ff. 

88  London,  1902.  See  also  Carter,  C.  H.,  Haverford  Essays,  Haverford,  Pa.,  1909, 
pp.  237  ff.    Not  consulted.    Cp.  Bruce,  op.  cit.,  VIII,  n.  2. 

38  G.  Paris  also  pointed  out  the  wide  distribution  of  the  Theme,  JdS,  1902,  449,  n.  1. 


EPISODES 


43 


Cliges  tournament  Crestien  was  not  dealing  directly  with  tradition, 
but  taking  the  story  second-hand  after  it  had  already  been  worked 
over  into  romance  form  (42) ;  moreover  since  the  contest  lasts  four 
days  instead  of  the  customary  three,  Cliges  contains  but  a  mud- 
dled version  of  the  folk  tournament,  and  is  therefore  debarred  at 
once  from  the  claim 40  of  having  introduced  the  episode  into  ro- 
mance.41 

No  one  can  deny,  in  the  face  of  the  evidence  brought  together 
by  Miss  Weston,  that  the  Three  Days '  Tournament  is  a  widespread 
folk-tale,  but  whether  Crestien  used  this  folk-tale,  is  another  mat- 
ter. It  is  possible  that  both  of  the  features  upon  which  Miss 
Weston  insists:  disguise  in  particular  colors  (black  or  green, 
white,  and  red)  and  a  tournament  of  invariably  three  days'  dura- 
tion may  have  sprung  up  independently  of  each  other  and  of 
folk  tradition.  Disguise  in  strange  arms,  as  Professor  Nitze  has 
pointed  out  in  his  review  42  of  Miss  Weston 's  book,  is  a  common 
device  in  mediaeval  romance  when  a  knight  for  some  reason  or 
other  wishes  to  ride  on  a  quest  or  in  a  tourney  incognito.  He  cites 
several  cases: 

Perceval  le  Gallois  {Perlesvaus)  I,  235,  where  Gawain  is 
victor  in  a  Three  Days'  Tournament  in  which  he  appears  suc- 
cessively in  red  armor,  in  his  own,  and  in  gold  armor,  the  Charrete, 
5515  ff.,  where  Lancelot,  disguised  in  red  arms,  the  first  day  obeys 
the  queen's  request  to  faire  au  noauz,  and  on  the  second,  redeems 
his  reputation.  He  mentions  also  the  Ipomedon,  the  prose  Lance- 
lot, and  the  Lanzelet  of  Ulrich  von  Zatzikhoven.43 

Professor  Nitze  suggests  the  query  that  as  green,  red,  and 
black  knights  abound  in  mediaeval  tales,  what  is  more  natural 
than  that  some  one  poet  should  have  brought  these  individual  col- 
ors together  to  effect  a  series  of  disguises  for  his  hero.  This  pro- 
cess could  have  been  the  starting  point  for  disguise  in  colors, — 

40  Cp.  G.  Paris,  JdS,  1902,  449  and  Foerster,  L,  XLIII,  CXXVI  who  think  that  Cliges 
is  the  first  romance  to  deal  with  the  th«me.  F.  thinks  it  C.'s  invention;  P.,  that  he  had  a 
source  for  it. 

41  Op.  cit.,  14,  37.    Miss  Weston  gives  this  priority  to  the  Ur-Lancelot,  32. 

42  MLN  XVIII,  155  ff. 

48  Miss  Weston  also  notes  these,  35,  38.  Paris,  JdS,  1902,  449,  n.  1,  cites  IpomtSdon 
and  the  prose  Lancelot,  Sir  Oowther,  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion,  Sone  de  Nansai.  To  these 
may  be  added  the  Chevalier  du  Papegaut  (ed.,  Heuckencamp,  Halle,  1896,  29,  11.  30  ff. 
where  the  hero,  as  in  the  Charrete,  complies  with  the  Fairy  Mistress's  request  to  faire 
au  noauz  the  first  day,  and  recovers  his  former  prestige  on  the  second. 


44 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


invention  based  on  literary  material.  The  device  need  not  have 
originated  in  the  folk-tale.  The  literary  version  may  have  at- 
tracted to  it  the  particular  colors  of  the  folk-tale,  but  the  mere 
idea  of  a  succession  of  colors  need  not  have  been  folkloristic.44 

Again,  the  idea  of  a  Three  Days'  Tournament  is  not  confined  to 
folk-tale  and  romance.  Both  Geoffrey  and  "Wace  speak  of  Ar- 
thur's coronation  celebration  as  lasting  three  days  (ERB  IX, 
xiv;  B  10802);  that  is,  both  state  that  the  games,  including  the 
jousts,  began  directly  after  the  banquet  held  on  the  day  of  the 
coronation,  and  that  on  the  fourth  day  the  king  exhibited  his 
largess  towards  the  victors.  Further,  both  historians  say  that  a 
tournament  of  three  days'  duration  was  actually  a  custom  of  the 
Arthurian  court  (ERB  IX,  xiii)  ;  Facetae  etiam  mulieres  consi- 
milia  indumenta  habentes,  nullius  amorem  habere  dignabantur, 
nisi  tertio  in  militia  approbatus  esset.  Efficiebantur  ergo  castrae 
mulieres,  et  milites  amore  illarum  meliores. 
Wace  says:  10790    Ne  ja  chevalier  n'i  eiist 

De  quel  parage  que  il  fust, 

Ja  peiist,  en  tute  sa  vie, 

Aveir  bele  dame  a  amie 

Se  il  n 'eiist  avant  este 

De  chevalerie  pruve. 
The  important  "three  days"  is  supplied  by  the  MS  du  Roi  7515  3-3- 
Colbert  which  reads :  for  the  last  couplet,  Se  il  n' eiist  Hi  fois  este  De 
chevalerie  esprove. 

The  question  is,  did  the  chroniclers  get  their  idea  from  the  folk- 
tale or  from  some  other  source?  Examination  of  the  chronicle  ac- 
counts shows  that  of  the  nine  salient  features  of  the  folk-tale, 
listed  by  Miss  Weston  on  page  47,  they  possess  but  two :  a  tourna- 
ment of  three  days,  and  the  love  element.  There  is  no  disguise; 
there  are  no  colors.  A  knight  is  here  put  to  the  test  before  his 
lady  and  must  prove  himself  in  three  battles.  Not  only  is  there 
no  mention  of  different  colors,  but  both  Geoffrey  and  Wace  state 
distinctly  in  this  very  passage  that  Arthurian  knights  wore  their 
arms  all  of  one  color.  This  does  not  look  as  though  the  tourna- 
ment described  in  the  chronicles  originated  in  the  folk-tale.  Pos- 
sibly it  was  Geoffrey's  invention,  but  more  probably  it  is  a  reflec- 


44  On  the  significance  of  these  colors,  see  Miss  Weston,  37  and  n. 


EPISODES  45 

tion  of  actual  life.  Studies  in  the  social  life  of  the  Middle  Ages 
record  a  tournament  of  several  days'  duration  as  a  customary 
event.  Schultz  45  in  his  account,  however,  says  nothing  specifically 
of  three  days.  Gautier  46  speaks  of  events  of  the  first  day  followed 
by  several  other  days  of  tourney.  Prizes  were  given  on  the  last 
day.  The  glossary  (844,  col.  3)  notes  the  first,  second,  and  third 
or  final  day  of  the  tourney,  after  which,  prizes  were  distributed. 
Thus  tournaments  of  more  than  one  day,  and  sometimes  of  speci- 
fically three,  seem  to  have  been  customary  in  actual  life.47  The 
number  three,  aside  from  the  superstition  attached  to  it,  would  be 
natural  number  to  fix  upon,  because  it  would  offer  opportunity  for 
a  deciding  combat  in  case  the  first  two  battles  should  happen  to 
show  no  advantage  to  either  of  two  given  opponents.  It  seems 
more  likely,  in  view  of  this  evidence,  that  the  tournament  of  the 
chronicles  is  a  reflection  of  contemporary  life  rather  than  of  pop- 
ular origin. 

To  return  to  the  original  question,  does  the  Cliges  tournament 
in  which  there  are  present  both  the  several  days  and  the  popular 
colors,  owe  its  origin  to  the  folk-tale,  to  a  literary  source,  or  to  the 
fashion  of  the  day?  Let  us  examine  the  Cliges  tournament, 
4579  ft. 

The  hero  is  here  proving  himself  before  the  Arthurian  court, 
though  not  before  his  lady  unless  we  suppose  him  to  be  indirectly 
inspired  by  the  absent  Fenice.  He  fights  four  battles, — one  over 
the  conventional  number.  Note,  however,  that  Cliges  in  prepar- 
ing his  disguise,  sends  three  squires  to  London  to  purchase  three 
suits  of  armor:  black,  green,  and  red  (4600).  Nothing  is  said 
about  a  fourth  suit,  yet  on  the  fourth  day  Cliges  appears  in 
white  arms  against  Gawain.48  Miss  Weston  does  not  mention  this 
discrepancy  but  speaks  altogether  of  a  four  days'  tournament,  as 
though  Crestien  had  blundered  by<  departing  from  the  popular 
number ;  his  object  being,  she  thinks,  to  combine  the  two  versions  of 

45  Op.  ext.,  II,  113. 

48  La  Chevalreie,  Paris,  1884,  696. 

47  Miss  Weston  admits  that  the  literary  versions  may  have  been  influenced  by  the 
customs  of  the  day,  p.  35. 

48  That  Cliges  is  here  fighting  his  uncle,  may  be  an  additional  reason  for  disguise. 
It  is  a  common  occurrence  in  romance  for  blood  relatives  to  fight  as  opponents  in  dis- 
guise. See  Tvain,  5991  ff.  where  Yvain  and  Gawain,  sons  of  the  brothers,  Urien  and  Lot, 
respectively  (See  pp.  4,  99,  111)  are  matched  in  combat,  though  without  disguise.  The 
father  and  son  combat  motif  is  another  instance. 


46  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTEEN  DE  TROIES 

the  original  tale  where  the  colors  were  in  one  case,  black,  red,  and 
white;  and  in  the  other,  green,  red,  and  white  (38).  But  there  are 
in  this  episode,  as  we  see,  distinct  traces  of  a  Three  Days'  Tourna- 
ment. In  the  three  combats  for  which  the  three  suits  of  armor 
were  prepared,  the  black,  the  red,  and  the  green,  Cliges  is  victor. 
So  far,  the  narrative  agrees  with  the  folk-tale.  Why  does  the  poet 
add  another  day?  Perhaps  he  does  it  to  show  honor  to  his  favor- 
ite knight,  Gawain.  (See  pp.  112  f.)  Cliges,  as  the  hero,  must  be 
given  a  chance  to  measure  swords  with  Gawain.  This  is  Crestien's 
habit:  Erec,  Yvain,  Perceval  are  each  allowed  to  meet  Gawain 
in  the  field,  in  every  case  to  show  that  they  as  heroes  may  be  his 
equals,  but  not  his  superiors.  He  is  the  sun  that  illuminates  all 
chivalry  (Yvain  2402),  whom  even  the  hero  of  the  romance  can- 
not force  into  a  second  place.  Gawain  could  not  be  Cliges 's  oppo- 
nent on  any  one  of  the  three  days,  for  those  battles  were  especially 
designed  to  distinguish  the  hero,  hence,  only  by  extending  the 
number  of  days  can  he  bring  Gawain  into  the  tourney  and  make 
Cliges  his  peer,  but  not  his  conqueror. 

In  the  light  of  this  discussion  it  is  possible  that  the  Cliges  tour- 
nament originated  in  some  such  way  as  this.  As  a  test  of  the  hero's 
valor  for  the  sake  of  his  lady,  and  as  a  series  of  combats  in  which 
the  hero  must  always  be  victorious,  the  episode  reflects  the  chi- 
valric,  romantic  spirit  of  Wace.  In  the  use  of  the  particular  col- 
ors as  disguise  it  may  reflect  popular  traits,  or  as  Nitze  suggests,  it 
may  show  merely  a  bringing  together  of  a  number  of  colors  al- 
ready in  romance.  Finally,  the  fact  that  the  Cliges  tournament 
starts  out  as  a  three  days'  affair  and  turns  into  a  four  days'  com- 
bat, and  that  the  number  of  days  for  the  tournaments  in  Erec, 
Lancelot,  Peredur,  and  the  Chevalier  du  Papegaut  is  either  more 
or  less  than  three,  while  the  folk-story  never  varies  from  the  num- 
ber three,  according  to  Miss  "Weston,  leads  to  the  inference  that 
the  tournament  developed  independently  in  the  folk-tale  and  in 
romance.  The  only  influence  that  the  popular  version  is  likely  to 
have  had  on  the  romance  version  is  the  use  of  the  particular  colors. 
The  motive  and  the  conception  of  the  Cliges  tournament  are  thor- 
oughly chivalric  and  romantic,  and  hence  they  could  have  been 
inspired  either  by  the  Brut  or  by  actual  custom.  This  seems  to 
me  a  more  plausible  explanation  than  insistence  upon  the  episode 
as  a  muddled  version  of  the  folk-tale. 


EPISODES 


47 


The  final  exploit  in  Cliges  appears  to  be  connected  with  the  mi- 
litary expeditions  of  the  historical  Arthur.  It  is  the  projected  at- 
tack on  Constantinople.  This  excursion  is  motived,  however,  by  a 
romantic,  not  a  historical  situation:  Alis,  the  emperor  of  Greece 
and  uncle  of  Cliges  has  acted  dishonorably  and  tyrannically  to- 
wards his  nephew.  Cliges  goes  to  Arthur  for  redress,  and  the  king 
gathers  an  armament  with  which  he  proposes  to  go  against  Con- 
stantinople, the  emperor's  capital  (6672  ff.)  Arthur's  assembling 
his  forces  recalls  Wace's  account  of  the  king's  preparations  to  in- 
vade Roman  territory  as  the  result  of  the  Roman  emperor's  demand 
for  tribute  (11402  ff.).  Both  accounts  give  the  idea  of  prepara- 
tion on  a  very  large  scale,  and  both  enumerate  the  dependencies 
that  lend  their  aid: 

B  11410    Ireis,  Golandeis,  Islandeis, 

Daneis,  Noreis,  e  Orqueneis. 

Set  vint  mil  armez  unt  promis. 


11418    Cil  de  Normandie,  e  d'Anjou, 
Cil  d  'Auvergne  e  de  Peitou ; 
Cil  de  Flandres,  cil  de  Buluigne, 

11422    Quatre  vint  mil  armes  pramistrent 
De  tant  deivent  servir,  ce  distrent. 
Douze  cuntes  de  grant  puissance, 
Que  l'on  apeleit  pers  de  France, 
Qui  od  Gerin  de  Chartres  furent, 
De  douze  cent  le  numbre  crurent : 


11430    Dis  milliers  en  pramist  Hoel, 

Dels  [deus]  milliers  li  quens  Aguisel. 
So  much  for  the  knights  and  the  nobles.  Of  the  commons,  Wace  says : 
11438    Ne  sai  numbrer  ne  cil  n'i  firent 
Qui  le  grant  ost  assamble  virent. 
The  great  host  embarks  and  lands  at  Barbefloe  en  Normandie 
(11445).  Crestien  says : 

C  6682    Et  li  rois  dit  que  a  navie 
Devant  Constantinoble  ira 
Et  de  chevaliers  anplira 
Mil  nes  et  de  serjanz  trois  mile, 


48 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Teus  que  citez  ne  bors  ne  vile 

Ne  chastiaus,  tant  soit  forz  ne  hauz, 

Ne  porra  sofrir  lor  assauz. 


6692    Li  rois  querre  et  semondre  anvoie 

Toz  les  hauz  barons  de  sa  terre 

Et  fet  apareillier  et  querre 

Nes  et  dromonz,  buces  et  barges. 

D'escuz,  de  lances  et  de  targes 

Et  d'armeiire  a  chevalier 

Fet  gant  nes  anplir  et  chargier. 

Por  ostiier  fet  aparoil 

Li  rois  si  grant,  qu'ains  le  paroil 

N'ot  nes  Caesar  ne  Alixandres. 

Tote  Angleterre  et  totes  Flandres. 

Normandie,  France  et  Bretaingne, 

Et  toz  gaus  jusqu'as  porz  d'Espaingne 

A  fet  semondre  et  amasser. 
For  several  reasons  this  passage  is  reminiscent  of  the  Brut. 
First,  it  is  an  Arthurian  passage.  The  oriental  portion  of  the 
romance  connects  itself  with  the  Arthurian  court  just  twice :  in 
the  four  days'  tournament,  and  in  this  incident.  Since  every 
other  Arthurian  passage  in  Cliges  seems  traceable  to  the  Brut,  and 
since  this  Arthurian  passage  finds  a  parallel  in  the  Brut  there  is 
a  likelihood  of  its'  springing  from  that  source,  also.  Second,  the 
Arthur  of  the  romances  is  almost  invariably  inactive,  a  background 
figure,  before  whom  more  youthful  heroes  come  and  go  and  flash 
into  fame.  (See  pp.  83  ff.,  133  ff.)  But  in  Cliges,  Crestien  makes 
Arthur  as  active  a  figure  as  the  technique  of  the  story  will  per- 
mit. The  fact  that  he  brings  Arthur  forward  when  he  already  has 
two  heroes  to  manage  points  rather  strongly  to  chronicle  influence. 
Thirdly,  if  we  note  the  dependencies  that  the  Arthur  of  the  Cliges 
summons  we  find  that  they  are  some  of  the  very  lands  subjugated 
by  him  in  his  wars  for  supremacy  recounted  by  "Wace : 
C  6702  tote  Angleterre. 

B  9266  ff.  narrates  Arthur's  conquest  of  England. 

C  6702  totes  Flandres. 

B  10149  Flandres  e  Buluigne  cunquist. 


EPISODES  49 

C  6703  Normandie,  France  et  Bretaingne. 
B  10146  ff.   Conquest  of  France  by  Arthur. 

B  10415  ff.   Arthur  gives  Normandie  as  a  fief  to  Bedver,  his  but- 
ler. 

C  6704    Et  toz  caus  jusqu'as  porz  d'Espaingne. 

B  10597    Everybody  was  present  at  the  coronation,  even  those 

jusqu'en  Espaigne. 
B  6026  ff.  tells  of  the  settlement  of  Armorica  by  colonists  sent  out 
from  Britain.    Cp.  Cliges  439. 
For  these  reasons  this  account  in  Cliges  looks  like  a  borrowing 
from  the  Brut. 

Under  this  head  should  be  discussed  a  few  lines  from  the  first 
part  of  the  story,  relative  to  Arthur's  departure  for  Brittany.  Cres- 
tien  says,  when  the  news  of  Arthur 's  coming  reached  Brittany : 
439    Que  li  rois  vient  et  si  baron, 
S'an  font  grant  joie  li  Breton, 
and  when  Arthur  is  preparing  to  return  to  England  on  learning  of 
Angres's  treachery: 

1089    .  .par  tote  Bretaingne" 

Fait  crier  que  nus  n'i  remaingne, 
Qui  puisse  armes  porter  an  ost, 
Que  apres  lui  ne  vaingne  tost. 

These  lines,  too,  echo  Arthur's  wars  for  supremacy,  since  they  show 
that  Brittany  was  under  fealty  to  him.  Further,  the  Britons'  de- 
light over  Arthur's  coming  is  no  doubt  connected  with  the  fact 
that  the  inhabitants  of  Britain  49  (England)  and  Brittany  (Armor- 
ica) are  of  one  origin  and  that  in  history,  amicable  relations  were 
further  emphasized  through  Hoel,  Duke  of  Armorica,  who  was 
Arthur's  nephew.50 

Thus  it  appears  likely  that  Cliges,  in  addition  to  its  dependence 
on  the  Tristan  of  Thomas  and  on  the  Marques  de  Borne  story  is, 
in  such  episodes  as  the  Rebellion  of  Count  Angres,  Alexander's 
exploit  on  the  banks  of  the  Thames,  the  Four  Days'  Tournament, 
and  the  Expedition  against  Constantinople,  more  or  less  indebted  to 
the  Brut,  of  Wace, — a  consideration  that  emphasizes  the  literary 
origin  of  this  romance. 

49  For  discussion  of  Bretaingne,  see  pp.  114  ff. 

50  B  6026  ff.,  9375  ff.,  9774,  10592,  etc. 


Chapter  II 
Episodes,  Continued 
The  Chevalier  a  la  Charrete 

Gaston  Paris  (Bom.  XII,  1883,  459)  has  clearly  pointed  out  the 
discrepancies  1  in  the  narrative  of  the  Charrete  and  the  difficulties 
in  the  way  of  determining  its  sources.  Crestien's  romance,  he 
says,  has  but  a  distant  connection  with  the  mythological  story  of 
the  other-world.  The  He  de  verre  has  been  transported  from  a 
far-off  western  region  to  a  province  of  Britain;  the  king  of  the 
dead  has  become  an  actual  prince.  Only  feeble  traces  of  the  super- 
natural are  left.  Meliaganz  seems  to  have  been  an  Irish 
chief; 2  here  he  has  become  king  [rather  son  of  a  king]  of  Somer- 
set with  a  capital  at  Bade.  Bade  can  only  be  Bath,  one  of  the 
principal  cities  of  Somersetshire.  The  name  "Bath"  is  Anglo- 
Saxon,  but  figures  in  Celtic  legend.  [He  then  quotes  from  Geoff- 
rey and  Wace.]  Gorre,  the  land  of  which  Bade  is  the  capital,  he 
is  at  a"  loss  how  to  explain.  In  regard  to  the  sources  of  the  story  he 
concludes  (533)  :  The  Breton  conte,  which  Crestien  knew  under 
a  much  altered  form,  had  a  mythological  source,  the  abduction  of 
a  queen  by  the  king  of  the  dead,  and  her  rescue  by  her  husband.3 
Later,  this  story  was  identified  with  Arthur  and  Guinevere.  Next, 
the  king  of  the  dead  receives  the  name  of  Maelwas,4  is  identified 
with  a  real  personage,  and  loses  in  great  measure  his  supernatural 
character.  The  other-world  traits  that  persist  are,  the  He  de  verre, 
the  country  whence  there  is  no  return,  and  the  pont  de  Vespee. 
[He  might  have  added  the  pont  evage.]  An  Anglo-Norman  poem 
takes  the  story  at  this  point,  but  makes  Lancelot  the  deliverer  of 
Guinevere.  As  yet,  he  is  not  her  lover.  Probably  it  is  to  Crestien 
that  the  illicit  relation  of  Lancelot  and  Guinevere  is  due.  The  poet 
says  that  Marie  de  Champagne  gave  him  the  matiere.  Probably  as 
daughter  of  Eleanor  of  England  she  had  heard  the  recital  of  the 

1  See  also  Earrenritter  LXXXIII;  and  Miss  Weston,  The  Legend  of  Sir  Lancelot  du 
Lac,  London,  1901,  42. 

2  Rom.  XII,  512,  n. 

3  This  theory  is  based  on  the  testimony  of  the  Vita  Gildae,  see  p.  53.  See  also  Ear- 
renritter LXVI.  Miss  Weston,  however,  thinks  Gawain  the  original  rescuer.  {Legend  of 
Sir  Gawain,  London,  1897,  83)  Later,  in  the  Lancelot  (53)  she  admits  that  the  only 
points  satisfactorily  settled  are  the  original  character  of  the  story,  and  the  fact  that 
Lancelot  was  not  at  first  the  hero  of  the  adventure. 

4  Paris,  Bom.  X,  492;  XII,  502;  Lot,  Bom.  XXIV  27,  327,  568. 


EPISODES 


51 


Anglo-Norman  poem  and  had  given  it  to  Crestien.5  She  furnished 
him  with  the  sens  also.  Marie  de  Champagne  was  active  in  a  move- 
ment in  the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century  to  develop  the  idea 
of  a  love  "raffine,  savant,  intimement  lie  a  la  courtoisie  et  a  la 
prouesse,  en  donnant  a,  la  femme  en  tant  que  maitresse,  une  im- 
portance qu'elle  n'avait  pas  eu  jusque  la.  Cet  amour,"  he  con- 
cludes, "est  precisement  l'inspiration  du  poeme  de  Chretien  qui  le 
peint  telque  l'avait  concu  la  theorie  de  ces  cercles  elegants,  dans  la 
liaison  de  Lancelot  et  de  Guenievre."  This  opinion,  except  of 
course  for  the  Anglo-Norman  hypothesis,  has  been  generally  ac- 
cepted. Is  it  possible  that  Wace  could  have  had  any  influence  on 
the  composition  of  a  work  apparently  so  far  removed  from  the 
atmosphere  of  chronicle  history? 

We  may  remember  that  the  HBB  6  and  the  Brut  recount  at 
length  Arthur's  wars  for  the  control  of  Britain  and  neighboring 
territory — wars  with  the  Picts,  Scots,  Irish,  Saxons,  the  king  of 
Iceland,  and  the  king  of  the  Orkneys.  Special  emphasis  is  given, 
naturally,  to  the  hostility  of  the  Saxons.  The  enmity  had  been  of 
long  duration,  having  begun  with  the  landing  of  this  people  under 
the  leadership  of  Hengist  and  Horsa  in  the  reign  of  Vortigern 
(B  6860).  According  to  history,  Arthur's  attempts  against  these 
foes  began  at  York  by  the  river  Duglas  (9275).  Discouraged  he 
retreats  to  London  (9365).  His  next  move  is  to  Lincoln  where 
he  defeats  the  Saxons  in  the  forest  of  Celidon(  9403,7  9422.)  Pres- 
ently the  Saxons  lay  siege  to  Bath  in  Somerset.  When  Arthur  gets 
word  of  this  he  desists  from  pursuing  the  Picts  and  Scots  and 
moves  upon  Bath  where  he  wins  one  of  the  great  victories  of  his 
career,  slaying  with  his  Own  hand  470  8  Saxons  in  the  one  battle. 
Then  he  returns  to  the  Picts  and  Scots  in  Albania  (9642)  and 
there  reduces  these  people  and  the  interfering  Irish  to  subjection 
(9690),  after  which,  he  moves  South  by  way  of  York  (9834).  The 
next  summer  he  makes  a  successful  expedition  against  Ireland, 

6  See  also  Weston,  Lancelot,  48. 
6ERB  IX,  i,  B  9266  ff. 

7  For  Geoffrey's  Eaerllndoit  the  Brut  reads  Nicole,  Lindocolinum,  X,  iii. 

8  HBB  IX,  iv.    Wace  says:  quatre  cens,  9590. 


52  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Iceland,  Gothland,  and  the  Orkneys  and  then  settles  down  to  twelve 
years  of  peace  (9978). 9 

It  is  significant  that  although  most  of  this  fighting  takes  place 
in  the  north,  the  conflict  described  in  greatest  detail  is  that  around 
Bath,  in  southwestern  England.  The  meeting  of  Britons  and 
Saxons  at  Bath  had  been  famous  in  history  ever  since  the  time  of 
Gildas,10  that  is,  about  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century,  hence 
Geoffrey  and  Wace  had  a  good  precedent  for  their  detailed  ac- 
counts. The  important  point  for  us  is  the  prominent  association 
of  Arthurian  story  with  a  locality  in  southern  Britain. 

Certain  features  of  this  militant  relation  between  Britons  and 
Saxons  find  a  parallel  in  the  Charrete.  The  story  opens  with  Ar- 
thur's realm  on  hostile  terms  with  that  of  King  Baudemagus.  On 
account  of  Crestien's  vague  and  unsatisfactory  geography,  Gorre, 
the  kingdom  of  Baudemagus  is  yet  to  be  identified.  Gaston  Paris, 
as  we  have  seen  (p.  50)  makes  no  attempt  to  solve  the  problem. 
Brugger  11  devotes  71  pages  to  the  question,  offering  rather  uncer- 
tainly the  hypothesis  that  Gorre  is  to  be  identified  with  Strathmore 
in  Scotland,  but  concluding  with  the  confession  that  the  matter  is 
still  in  der  Luft.  Rhys  12  connects  Gorre  with  Gower,  a  peninsula 
on  the  southern  coast  of  Wales,  an  opinion  rejected  by  Brugger. 
Lot 13  explains  the  confusion  of  Bath  in  Somerset  with  Gorre 
through  a  misunderstanding  by  Crestien  and  Godefroi  de  Laigny 
of  the  material  they  were  handling,  and  suggests  that  Gorre  may 
be  the  French  pronunciation  of  the  old  Welsh  Gwydr  (Mod.  Welsh, 
Grutr)  translating  the  French  verre.  Gorre  may  thus  be  the  He 
de  verre  or  Glastonbury.  This  hypothesis,  Brugger  thinks  not 
impossible. 

The  most  reasonable  views,  it  seems  to  me,  are  those  tending  to 
locate  Gorre  in  the  South.  Brugger  is  evidently  working  in  accord 
with  Zimmer's  theory  14  of  the  beginning  of  historical  Arthurian 

s  HUB  IX,  x.  The  Brut  reads  trente  cms,  but  the  two  variant  readings  noted  by 
the  editor  have  "12  years,"  II,  p.  13,  n.  a. 

10  Giles,  op.  cit,  313,  409. 
Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  4,  7,  8,  30. 

11  ZfS  XXVIII  (1906)  1  ff. 

12  Studies  in  Arthurian  Legend,  Oxford,  1891,  329. 

13  Rom.  XXIV,  332. 

14  GGA  (1890)  525. 


EPISODES 


53 


story  in  the  North,  when  he  would  place  Gorre  in  Scotland.15  But, 
as  Zimmer  says,  the  Britons  of  the  North,  pushed  into  the  South- 
west of  the  island  by  their  Saxon  foes,  carried  Arthurian  story 
with  them.  Hence  by  the  time  of  Nennius,  in  the  ninth  century, 
the  tradition  was  already  associated  with  such  places  as  Bath  and 
Carlion.  In  the  EBB,  Bath,  Carlion,  London,  Southampton, 
Cornwall,  Winchester  figure  in  Arthur's  progress.  Moreover,  the 
Vita  Gildae,  attributed  to  Caradoc  of  Lancarvan  (1150ca)16,  brings 
Arthur  to  Glastonbury  there  to  besiege,  with  an  army  drawn  from 
Cornwall  and  Devon,  Melwas,  king  of  the  Aestivo  regions,  Somer- 
set, who  had  stolen  away  Guinevere  and  concealed  her  in  this  strong- 
hold.17 

In  the  face  of  this  testimony  it  seems  only  reasonable  to  asso- 
ciate Gorre  with  the  South.  We  do  not  have  to  go  to  Scotland  to 
get  a  body  of  water  with  which  to  surround  Gorre  (L.657).  Som- 
erset, for  example,  borders  on  the  Bristol  Channel.  Whatever  the 
origin  of  the  name  may  be,  I  believe  that  Crestien,  as  it  will  ap- 
pear inevitably  in  the  course  of  this  study,  was  either  ignorant  of 
or  indifferent  to  geographical  location ;  and  that  since  we  have  for 
a  clue  Bath  of  Somerset  as  the  capital  city  of  an  unidentified  region 
called  Gorre,  we  may,  for  the  present,  at  least,  infer  that  Gorre 
was  supposed  to  be  in  the  region  of  Somerset. 

To  return  to  the  subject  of  the  hostility  between  Britain  and 
Gorre,  in  both  the  Brut  and  the  Charrete,  the  center  of  war  be- 
tween these  two  kingdoms  is  Bath.  Next,  the  quarrel  motiving  the 
plot  is  not  a  private  matter  between  Meliaganz  and  Arthur  or  any 
one  of  his  knights;  the  whole  of  both  realms  is  involved  and  the 
trouble  has  been  going  on  for  some  time  before  the  story  opens.  Just 
as  with  the  historical  Arthur  and  the  Saxons,  the  difficulty  is  be- 
tween old  enemies. 

It  is  Ascension  day ;  the  Court  is  assembled  at  Carlion  or  Cama- 

15  Note  that  Urien,  called  by  the  chroniclers,  King  of  Morray,  (Brut  9865,  HRB 
IX,  xii)  is  by  Malory  made  king  of  Gorre,  (Morte  d'Arthur  ed.  Strachey,  London,  1909, 
27,  31,  35,  42).  Whether  Malory  identified  Morray  with  Gorre  it  is  hard  to  say.  Once, 
however,  he  makes  Bagdemagus,  king  of  Gore,  405. 

16  Paris,  Rom.  XII,  511  thinks  it  was  later.  Lot,  Melanges  d'Histoire  Bretonne, 
Paris,  1907,  275  says:  "Caradoc  serait  mort  en  1156 — Tout  ce  qu'on  peut  dire,  c'est 
que  son  oeuvre  est  anterieure  a  1166,  puisqu'on  poss&de  un  manuscrit  de  la  Vita  Gildae 
6crit  en  cette  annee  au  plus  tard." 

17  See  p.  50  and  n.  3. 


54 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


lot.18    Meliaganz  enters  suddenly,  and  approaching  Arthur  says: 
53        Bois  Artus,  j'ai  an  ma  prison 

De  ta  terre  et  de  ta  meison 

Chevaliers,  dames  et  pueeles, 

Mes  ne  t'en  di  pas  les  noveles 

Por  ce  que  jes  te  vuelle  randre ; 

Eincois  te  vuel  dire  et  aprandre 

Que  tu  n'as  force  ne  avoir, 

Por  quoi  tu  les  puisses  avoir. 

Et  saches  bien  qu'einsi  morras 

Que  ja  eidier  ne  lor  porras. 
He  then  demands  the  queen,  saying  that  he  will  ride  into  the 
woods  and  await  her  there.  Guinevere  departs  with  Kay;  soon  af- 
ter, Gawain  and  then  Lancelot  start  off  in  seach  of  her.  During 
the  quest,  Lancelot  is  entertained  at  the  court  of  a  vavasor  whose 
family : 

2063    N'estoient  pas  de  la  terre,19 
Mes  il  i  estoient  au  serre, 
Et  prison  tenu  i  avoient 
Mout  longement  et  si  estoient 
Del  reaume  de  Logres  ne. 
Lancelot  tells  his  host: 

2093    Del  reaume  de  Logres  sui 

Ainz  mes  an  cest  pais  ne  fui 
Then  the  host  says  to  Lancelot : 

2100    Tant  mar  i  fustes,  biaus  douz  sire, 
Tant  est  granz  domages  de  vos ! 
Qu'or  seroiz  aussi  come  nos 
An  servitume  et  an  essil. 
Lancelot,  riding  forward  with  his  two  companions,  meets  a  man 
who  desires  to  entertain  them  over  night.   As  the  host  is  about  to 
lead  them  with  him,  a  squire  dashes  up  crying  to  him : 
2301    Sire,  sire,  venez  plus  tost ! 

Car  cil  de  Logres  sont  a  ost 
Venu  sor  ceus  de  ceste  terre 
S'ont  ja  commanciee  la  guerre 

18  There  seems  to  be  a  confusion  of  names  here,  L  32,  34,  see  also  p.  74,  n.  70.  On 
Camalot,  see  Paris,  Bom.  XII,  464. 

19  i.  e.  Gorre. 


EPISODES 


55 


Et  la  tangon  et  la  nieslee ; 
Et  dient  qu'an  eest  contree 
S'est  uns  chevaliers  anbatuz 
Qui  an  mainz  lens  s'est  conbatuz, 
N'an  ne  li  puet  contretenir 
Passage,  on  il  vuelle  venir, 
Que  il  n'i  past,  cni  qu'il  enuit. 
Et  dient  ou  eest  pais  tuit 
Que  il  les  deliverra  toz 
Et  metra  les  noz  au  dessoz. 
Or  si  vos  hastez,  par  inon  los! 

2324.  The  knight  thus  addressed  hurries  off  to  aid  his  country- 
men. Those  who  have  heard  the  squire's  message — Lancelot  and 
his  companions — rejoice  and  say  that  they  will  go  to  the  assistance 
of  their  friends.  These  friends  are  the  captive  Britons.  Lancelot 
and  his  companions  follow  the  man  to  a  fortress  where  a  great  bat- 
tle takes  place  in  which  Lancelot  is,  of  course,  the  victor.  The 
liberated  captives,  Cil  de  Logres,  (2425)  on  inquiring  to  whom 
they  are  indebted  learn : 

2425   Ce  est  cil 

Qui  nos  gitera  toz  d'essil 
Et  de  la  grant  maleurte 
Ou  nos  avons  lone  tans  este. 
Later  on,  Lancelot  is  again  entertained  by  a  host  originally 
from  Logres. 

2969     Sire,  nos  venimes  piec'a 
Del  reaume  de  Logres  ca 
says  the  host  to  his  guest. 

While  in  the  land  of  King  Baudemagus,  Lancelot  is  to  engage 
in  combat  with  Meliaganz,  the  king's  son,  and  abductor  of  Guine- 
vere.  Both  sides  assemble  to  witness  the  battle. 
3530     Le  chevalier  estrange  mande 

Li  rois  tantost  et  l'an  li  mainne 
An  la  place  qui  estoit  plainne 
Des  janz  del  reaume  de  Logres; 

*H'  *M*       W       IP  *K* 

3539     Estoient  la  tuit  aune 

Trois  jorz  avoient  jeune 


56 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Et  ale  nuz  piez  et  an  langes 

Totes  les  puceles  estranges 

Del  reaume  le  roi  Artu, 

Por  ce  que  Deus  force  et  vertu 

Donast  contre  son  averseire 

Au  chevalier  qui  devoit  feire 

La  bataille  por  les  cheitis. 
The  condition  of  exiled  maidens  is  clearly  indicated  here. 

This  combat  is  indecisive  and  another  is  arranged  for,  to  be 
held  later. 

3904   a  la  cort 

La  roi  Artu  iert  la  bataille 

Qui  tient  Bretaingne  et  Cornoaille: 
Bretaingne  et  Cornoaille  and  Logres  appear  to  be  synonymous 
here.    (See  p.  118  &  n.  7 ;  p.  120) . 

Another  reference  to  the  captive  people  occurs  when  Lancelot, 
before  he  enters  the  land  of  Gorre,  meets  a  maiden  who  says  to  him : 
1310     "Et  se  vos  ne  conduisiiez 

Par  les  us  et  par  les  costumes 

Qui  furent  ainz  que  nos  ne  fumes 

El  reaume  de  Logres  mises. "  20 
Moreover,  in  other-world  abduction  stories,  if  there  is  any  restora- 
tion usually  only  one  person  is  brought  back,  and  not  a  great  num- 
ber, as  here.  I  feel  that  there  has  been  confusion  of  sources  at  this 
point,  and  that  if  Crestien  had  fully  understood  the  nature  of  the 
fairy  material  he  was  using,  Arthur  might  not  have  been  placed  in 
such  an  ignominious  position  and  there  might  have  been  fewer 
inconsistencies  in  the  story. 

Is  it  pushing  the  parallel  too  far  if  we  read  in  these  passages 
the  idea  of  captivity  of  Britons  by  Saxons,  of  Saxons  by  Britons, 
and  the  idea  that  Arthur,  the  hero  of  the  historical  battles,  has 
here,  on  account  of  technical  requirements,  been  ^replaced  by 
Lancelot  the  hero  of  the  romance?  There  is  in  support  of  this 
view  still  another  piece  of  evidence:  the  name  and  person  of 
Baudemagus,  king  of  Gorre. 

First,  as  we  have  observed,  his  capital  city  is  Bath  in  Somerset 
(6255),  the  scene  of  the  historical  Arthur's  great  victory  over  the 

20Foerster  also  seems  to  be  of  this  opinion;  for  he  says:  "Dem  Sinn  kann  es  nur 
heissen;  'bevor  wir  von  Artus  erobert  -worden  sind'  "  Earrenritter  372. 


EPISODES 


57 


Saxons.  Secondly,  the  name  Baudemagus(z)  is  significant.  This  word 
offers  quite  as  much  of  a  crux  as  Gorre.  Here  again,  B  rugger  21 
has  much  to  say,  but  nothing  conclusive.  Although  he  recognizes 
the  form  Baudemagus,  he  bases  his  argument  relative  to  Crestien's 
use  of  the  word,  on  the  form  Bademagus.  There  is  something, 
however,  to  be  said  for  Baudemagus.  A  comparison  of  the  text 
with  the  MS  variants  shows  that  three  times  out  of  four,  the  name 
occurs  in  the  Baude-iorm,  in  the  MS  considered  by  Foerster  as  the 
most  reliable,  namely,  T;  22  and  that  in  the  Godefroi  de  Laigney 
portion 23  of  the  poem  the  form  is  invariably  Bade — in  all  the 
MSS.  It  is  also  to  be  noted  that  the  first  occurrence  of  the  name  in 
the  text  is  in  the  Baude-iorm  (656).  If  the  MSS  are  to  be  trusted, 
it  looks  as  though  the  Baude-iorm  was  the  one  used  by  Crestien. 
In  that  case  it  is  possible  to  see  how  Bade-  developed.  Phonetically, 
it  has  no  connection  with  Baude.  In  composition  it  was  probably 
influenced  by  Bade,  "Bath,"  since  Bade  was  the  capital  city  of 
Bademagus ; 24  or,  the  copyists  may  not  have  understood  the  Baude- 
iorm  and  having  the  name  Bade,  Bath  before  them,  corrected 
Baude-  to  Bade- .  This  explanation  would  account  for  the  frequent 
occurrence  of  Bade  in  the  MSS  other  than  T  and  for  the  absence 
of  Baude-  in  all  the  MSS  of  the  Laigny  portion.  The  fact  that 
Baude-  occurs  once  in  a  later  MS  (A,  656)  but  within  the  Cres- 
tien part  of  the  poem,  note,  may  indicate  an  accidental  survival  of 
the  original  form. 

If  Baudemagus  was  the  original  form  it  may  offer  some  testi- 

21  ZfS  XXVIII,  1  ff. 

22  656,  3157,  5158.  Foerster  says,  Karrenritter  XI,  that  he  has  made  up  his  text 
from  the  a  group,  that  is  T,  0.  (See  table  on  page  IX).  Therefore  the  text  must  be 
based  on  T  wherever  variants  from  C  occur  in  the  footnotes,  and  vice  versa.  Hence,  as 
the  text  reads  Baude-,  656,  and  the  variant  Bade-  occurs  in  O,  the  Baude-iorm  must  be- 
long to  I.  Verse  4427  reads  Bade-  without  any  variants;  so  here,  the  Bade-iorm  must 
be  in  T  too.  I  have  not  discussed  the  variants  found  in  the  later  MSS:  A  3157,  Bon- 
demaguz;  E  3157,  Badegamus ;  E  5158  Bondemagu,  because  they  do  not  seem  to  throw 
any  light  on  the  question.  These  later  forms  appear  in  the  cyclic  romances,  see  Brugger, 
ZfS  XXVIII,  11.  In  the  Wauchier  continuation  of  the  Perceval  we  find  Bagommedes 
30615.  (Potvin  ed.)  and  Baudemagus  43947.  There  is  no  evidence  in  the  Perceval  that 
this  person,  or  these  persons, — they  do  not  seem  to  be  the  same — have  any  connection 
with  Baudemagus  of  the  Charrete. 

23  Variously  given  from  6147-6167,  to  the  end.    See  Karrenritter  XVI. 

24  Lot,  Rom.  XXIV,  332;  and  Brugger,  ZfS  XXVIII,  7,  16,  think  that  Bade  is  de- 
rived from  Bademagus — Lot,  because  he  thinks  it  is  thus  that  Bade  of  Somerset  got 
confused  with  Gorre;  and  Brugger,  because  as  he  says,  Geoffrey  derives  Bade  from  its 
founder,  Bladud-  (but  Geoffrey  does  not  say  a  word  about  the  derivation  of  Bade,  II,  x). 
It  seems  more  likely  that  Bath  as  a  famous  place,  gave  rise  to  the  formation  Bademagus. 


58 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


mony  in  favor  of  the  historical  theory.  Separated  into  its  Obvious 
members,  Baude  and  Magus  the  word  looks  like  ' '  Baude,  the  magi- 
cian" and  may  be  set  beside  such  a  compound  as  Simon  Magus.25 
This  idea  suggests  a  connection  between  Baudemagus,  king  of- 
Bath  and  Bladus,  founder  of  Bath  and  creator  of  its  mysterious 
waters,  the  necromancer  26  whose  fame  is  recounted  in  the  Brut. 
1667     Bladus  fu  mult  de  grant  puissance 

E  sot  assez  de  nigromance. 

Cil  funda  Bade  e  fist  les  bainz ; 

Unques  n'i  orent  este  ainz, 

De  Bladu  fu  Balda  27  numee, 

La  secunde  letre  I  ostee. 

Ou  Bade  ot  par  le  baing  cest  nun 

Pur  la  merveilluse  facun; 

Les  bainz  fist  chauz  e  saluables 

E  al  poeple  mult  profitables. 
Note  that  Bladus  was  a  magician  and  the  marvelous  nature  of  the 
baths  is  due  apparently  to  his  necromantic  art.   On  turning  to  the 
Charrete  we  find  that  king  Baudemagus  is  apparently  connected 
with  mysterious  waters  and  marvelous  structures. 

(1)    Gawain  and  Lancelot  in  their  quest  of  Guinevere  are  met 
by  a  damsel  (640)  who  tells  them  that  the  queen  has  been  abducted 
by  Meliaganz,  son  of  the  king  of  Gorre,  and  carried  to  this  king- 
dom.  To  their  question,  where  is  this  land,  she  replies : 
651   "Tost  le  savroiz; 

Mes  ce  sachiez,  mont  i  avroiz 

Anconbriers  et  felons  trespas; 

Que  de  legier  n'i  antre  an  pas 

Se  par  le  congie  le  roi  non 

(Li  roi  Baudemaguz  a  non), 

Si  puet  an  autrer  totes  voies 

Par  deus  mout  perilleuses  voies 

Et  par  deus  mout  felons  passages. 

25  See  Hart,  J.  M.,  A  British  Icarus  in  MLN,  Dec.  1910. 

26  Brugger  ZfS  XXVIII,  7,  suggests  the  equations:  As  Geoffrey  derives  Bade  from 
Bladud,  so  Crestien  or  his  source,  derives  Bade  from  Bademagut.  As  Geoffrey  makes 
Bladud  founder  of  Bath,  so  Crestien  has  Bademagut  live  in  Bath.  The  first  equation 
is  answered  on  p.  57,  n.  24,  the  second,  I  agree  to. 

27  Probably  what  Wace  wrote  was  Bada  rather  than  Balda.  This  change  at  once 
renders  an  obscure  passage  clear:  Bada  (Latin)  would  give  in  French,  Bade. 


EPISODES 


59 


Li  uns  a  non  Li  Ponz  Evages, 
Por  ce  que  soz  eve  est  li  ponz ; 
Si  a  de  l'eve  jusqu'au  fonz 
Autant  de  soz  come  de  sus, 
Ne  de  ca  mains  de  la  plus, 
Ainz  est  li  ponz  tot  droit  an  mi; 
Et  si  n'a  que  pie  et  demi 
De  la  et  autretant  d'espes 
Bien  fet  a  refuser  cist  mes, 
Et  s'est  ce  li  mains  perilleus; 
Mes  il  a  assez  antre  deus 
Avantures  don  je  me  tes. 
Li  autre  ponz  est  plus  mauves 
Et  est  plus  perilleus  assez ; 
Qu'  ains  par  home  ne  fu  passez; 
Qu'il  est  come  espee  tranchanz 
Et  por  ce  trestotes  les  janz 
L'apelent  Le  Pont  De  L 'Espee." 

(2)  When  Lancelot  reaches  the  perilous  ponte  de  I' espee,  and 
dismounts  upon  the  near  side,  he  sees  the  water : 

3023     .    .    .    .    .    .   l'eve  felenesse, 

Roide  et  bruiant,28  noire  et  espesse, 

Si  leide  et  si  espoantable 

Con  se  fust  li  fluns  au  deable, 

Et  tant  perilleuse  et  parfonde  28 

Qu'il  n'est  riens  nule  an  tot  le  monde, 

S'ele  i  cheoit,  ne  fust  alee 

Aussi  come  au  la  mer  salee. 
Lancelot,  of  course,  essays  the  perilous  passage,  and  on  arriving 
on  the  further  shore,  immediately  sees  before  him  a  bower  from  the 
window  of  which  is  leaning  King  Baudemagus  (3152  ff.) 

(3)  The  second  perilous  passage,  the  bridge  laid  deep  under 
the  water,  is  attempted  by  Gawain  (5125  ff.)  Accomplishing  the 
ordeal  with  great  difficulty  he  reaches  the  opposite  shore  in  a 
faint.  As  soon  as  he  revives,  he  inquires  after  the  queen  and  is  an- 
swered by  those  who  were  with  King  Baudemagus : 

"These  epithets  are  frequently  used  by  Cretien  to  describe  other- world  waters,  E 
5879;  P  (Baist),  2950. 


60  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

5157     Et  cil  qui  li  ont  respondu 
D'avuee  le  roi  Baudemagu. 

Thus  Baudemagus  seems  to  have  some  connection  with  the 
perilous  passage  into  the  land  of  Gorre.  Furthermore,  Baude- 
magus as  he  leans  from  the  tower  window  apparently  watching 
Lancelot  crossing  the  pont  de  I'espee  is  described  as  mout  soutis 
et  aguz,  epithets  entirely  appropriate  to  a  magician.  (3158). 

Again,  both  Bladus  and  Baudemagus  are  represented  as  per- 
sons kindly  disposed.  Bladus  made  health-giving  baths;  Baude- 
magus is  always  friendly  towards  those  who  come  from  the  ene- 
my's camp.  It  is  his  son  Meliaganz  who  is  the  bitter  and  unfor- 
giving foe  (3157,  4427,  4254.)  Baudemagus  seems  out  of  place. 
Possibly  he  had  no  part  in  the  original  abduction  story.  He  may 
have  come  from  another  source.  Why  not  from  the  Brut? 

Finally,  the  names  Bladus  and  Baude-  are  related  phoneti- 
cally.29 The  compound  was  doubtless  invented  by  Crestien  or  his 
source. 

There  is  another  possible  explanation  for  the  second  part  of 
this  name:  Maguz(s)  may  equate  Mdbuz,  the  name  of  an  enchanter 
in  the  German  Lanzelet.  Mdbuz  or  rather  Mabon,  a  closely  related 
form,  is  found  compounded  with  Evrain  or  Agrain  in  Mabona- 
grain,30  the  victim  of  the  Joie  de  la  Cort  episode  in  Erec  (5367). 

In  the  Erec  appear  Mabonagrain,  and  Evrain,  his  uncle  who 
plays  the  role  of  Hospitable  Host.  In  the  Bel  Inconnu  are  found 
Mabon,  the  enchanter  of  the  Gaste  Cite,  and  Evrain  his  accomplice 
(3321,  3343). 

Thus  if  Mabon  has  been  compounded  in  the  one  instance  by 
Crestien  it  is  possible  that  the  form  has  served  him  a  second  time, 
in  Baudemagus.  But  in  either  case,  whether  we  adopt  Magus, 
magician,  or  Mabuz,31  the  name  of  a  magician,  we  arrive  at  prac- 
tically the  same  result :  the  word  refers  to  a  person  of  supernat- 
ural powers,  and  may  still  be  connected  with  Wace's  Bladus. 

29  Bladus  >  Baldus  by  metathasis  of  I.  Baldus  >  Baudus  by  vocalization  of  I.  See 
Suchier,  Les  Voyelles  Toniques  du  Vieux  Frangais  trad.  par.  Ch.  Guerlin  de  Guer,  Paris, 
1906,  §  50  and  esp.  §  56. 

*°  Pointed  out  by  Lot,  Bom.  XXIV,  321. 

81  For  further  discussion  of  Mabon  see  Philipot,  Bom.  XXV,  (1896)  275.  There  is 
often  a  similarity  in  the  names  of  other- world  characters :  the  Red  Knight,  Garlan  the 
Red,  Esclados  li  Ros;  Flore  de  mont,  la  Dame  aux  cheveux  blons,  Blanchefleur ;  Melwas, 
Meliganz,  Maheloas,  etc. 


EPISODES 


61 


As  a  connection  between  Bladus  and  Baudemagus  seems  pos- 
sible on  the  ground  of  phonology  as  well  as  of  character,  the  sup- 
position that  Crestien  borrowed  his  king  of  Bath  from  Wace  does 
not  seem  unreasonable. 

Another  situation  in  the  Charrete  that  may  have  been  inspired 
by  the  Brut  is  the  liaison  of  Guinevere  and  Lancelot.  We  have  al- 
ready seen  (p.  50)  that  according  to  Paris,  Crestien  was  the  first 
to  introduce  into  Arthurian  romance  the  illicit  love  of  this  pair, 
for  originally  the  rescuer  of  the  abducted  queen  was  her  husband.32 
But  sometime  before  the  composition  of  the  Charrete  the  unfaith- 
fulness of  Guinevere  had  been  recorded  in  the  chronicles.33  Wace, 
much  impressed  by  the  guilt  of  Modred  and  the  queen,  recorded 
his  opinion  forcibly  in  the  very  episode  which  Crestien  knew  well. 
It  has  been  shown  (pp.  36,  101)  why  for  technical  reasons  it  was 
impossible  for  Crestien  to  have  followed  Wace  in  leaving  the  queen 
of  the  Cliges  in  England  and  in  engaging  her  in  guilty  relations 
with  Angres.  But  there  is  no  reason  why  the  action  of  Guinevere 
should  not,  at  the  time  he  borrowed  from  Wace  for  the  Angres 
episode,  have  made  an  impression  on  him  which  bore  fruit  in  his 
next  romance,  the  Charrete.3* 

It  may  be  suggested  that  Crestien  knowing  Thomas's  Tristan, 
and  having  perhaps  composed  a  Tristan  of  his  own  was  in  the 
Charrete  attempting  to  reproduce  somewhat  the  same  situation,  but 
the  other  explanation  is  more  likely  since  he  had  a  very  good  model 
in  the  guilt  of  Guinevere  herself.35 

For  the  abduction  of  Guinevere  there  is,  as  we  have  seen,  a 

32  The  story  of  Guinevere  as  an  unfaithful  wife  was  current  as  tradition  however 
before  Crestien's  day.  See  Weston,  Lancelot  45  f . ;  Rhys,  Celtic  Folklore  49;  HL 
XXX,  200  f. 

&HRB  X,  xiii;  XI,  i. 

34  The  Brut  11460,  describes  Modred's  love  of  Guinevere  thus: 
II  aveit  la  reine  amee 
Mais  ce  esteit  chose  celee; 
II  s'en  celot  mais  qui  quidast 
Qu'il  la  feme  sun  uncle  amast? 
Change  uncle  to  rei  and  these  lines  would  describe  very  well  the  love  of  Lancelot 
and  Guinevere. 

85  See  Golther,  ZfS  XXII  (1900)  3;  and  Foerster,  Earrenritter,  LXXV,  LXXXII, 
who  remark  on  the  parallel  between  the  lovers  in  the  Tristan  and  in  the  Charrete. 


62 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CEESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


chronicle  foundation,  the  Vita  Gildae 36  (after  1150,  see  p.  53 
and  n.16).  "Gildas37  ingressus  est  glastonian — Melvas  rege  reg- 
nante  in  Aestiva  regione — glastonia,  id  est  urbs  vitrea  (quae  nomen 
sumsit  a  vitro)  est  (et)  urbs  nomine  primitus  in  britannice  sermone 
[suppl.  dicta  quis  witryn?].  Obsessa  est  itaque  ab  Arturo  tyranno 
cum  innumerabili  multitudine  propter  Guennuvar  uxorem  suam 
violatam  et  raptam  a  praedicto  iniquo  rege  et  ibi  ductam  propter 
refugium,  inviolati  loci,  propter  inundationes  arundineti  ac  flumi- 
nis  et  paludis,  causae  tutelae.  Quaesiverat  rex  rebellis?)  reginam 
per  unius  anni  circulum,  audivit  tamen  (1.  tandem?)  illam  glasto- 
niae  commorantem.  Illico  commovit  exercitus  totius  cornubiae  et 
Dibueniae  paratum  est  bellum  inter  inimicos.  Hoc  vivo,  abbas 
Glastoniae,  comitante  clero  et  Gilda  sapiente,  intravit  medias  acies. 
Consulvit  Melvas  regi  suo  pacifice  est  redderet  captam;  reddita 
ergo  fuit  quae  reddenda  fuerat  per  pacem  et  benevolentiam. " 

This  episode  has  several  points  in  common  with  the  Charrete 
story.  First,  the  names  of  the  abductors  are  similar : 38  secondly, 
their  kingdoms  seem  to  be  in  the  same  region.  (See  p.  53).  Third- 
ly, the  queen's  rescue  is  accomplished  only  after  a  struggle  involv- 
ing not  one  or  two  heroes  only,  but  whole  armies  (pp.  53  ff.).  It  is 
possible  that  the  Vita  Gildae  was  known  to  Crestien  or  at  least 
that  he  was  familiar  with  the  story  as  there  told ;  but  the  theme  of 
Guinevere's  infidelity  and  her  liaison  with  some  one  closely  related 

86  There  is  probably  little  actual  fact  in  this  narrative.  Lot,  Melanges  d'  Histoire  Bri- 
tonne,  237,  regards  it  is  "une  invention  romanesque  destinee  a  rehausser  la  gloire  de 
1'  abbaye  de  Glastonbury  (dans  la  Sommersetshire )  en  faisant  croire  qu'elle  possede  les 
reliques  des  plus  illustre  'savant'  des  Bretons."  He  regards  Guinevere's  abduction  as  of 
Welsh  origin  (269).  This  possible  Welsh  source  may  be  connected  with  the  tradition  cited 
by  Rhys  and  Miss  Weston  (see  p.  61,  n.  32)  of  Guinevere's  unfaithfulness.  See  also 
Paris  Bom.  X,  491;  XII,  511.  However,  Lot.  op  eit,  274,  282,  shows  that  the  Vita 
has  probably  been  influenced  by  Geoffrey,  hence  Geoffrey  may  have  been  the  inventor  of 
this  conception  of  Guinevere.  Such  a  situation  would  be  thoroughly  romantic.  Geoffrey 
mentions  Oaradoc  as  a  contemporary,  together  with  Henry  of  Huntington  and  William 
of  Malmesbury.    (San  Marte  ed.  p.  176;  Lot,  op.  cit.,  275,  p.  2). 

87  Ed.,  San  Marte.  This  extract  was  taken  from  Rom.  X,  491,  n.  1  where  it  is 
quoted  by  Paris. 

88  Paris,  Rom.  XII,  502  n.  1,  finds  a  phonetic  relation  between  Melvas  and  Meleagant; 
Zimmer  and  Foerster  do  not  agree  to  this,  (Earrenritter  XXXVIII,)  but  connect  Melvas 
with  Maheloas,  sire  de  Vlsle  de  Voirre  (Erec  1946).  Paris  also  points  out  this  relation. 
Brugger,  ZfS  XXVIII,  8,  n.  12,  says  that  since  Melwas  and  Meliaganz  are  alike  in  char- 
acter and  as  Melvas  and  Maheloas  are  both  from  the  Isle  de  Verre,  the  three  named 
must  be  intended  to  represent  the  same  character.  Did  Crestien  get  his  Maheloas  from 
the  Vita  Gildae? 


EPISODES 


63 


to  Arthur,  is  for  reasons  already  assigned,  probably  due  to  the  in- 
fluence of  Wace.39 

This  discussion  leads  to  the  opinion  that  Crestien,  while  adopt- 
ing as  the  substructure  of  his  romance  an  other-world  abduction 
story,  and  developing  as  the  theme  the  conception  of  an  amour 
court ois  subtilized  by  Andre  le  Chapelain  40  and  transmitted  by 
Marie  de  Champagne,  is  at  the  same  time  reminiscent  of  certain 
episodes  and  situations  found  in  the  Roman  de  Brut.  There  is  no 
desire  here  to  disagree  with  established  views  as  to  the  origin  of 
the  Charrete  story,  but  merely  to  show  that  beside  the  various  ele- 
ments already  known  to  exist,  there  may  be  also  an  historical 
element  quite  as  possible  to  trace  as  the  mythical  and  folkloristic 
features.  Such  a  conclusion  obtains  further  support  when  we  re- 
call Crestien 's  technique.  His  habit  of  rationalizing  other- world 
scenery  and  traditions  is  well  known.41  Paris  has  said  that  the 
other- world  coloring,  when  the  story  reached  Crestien 's  hands, 
lost  much  of  its  former  significance,  an  observation  to  which  all 
who  have  read  the  romance  must  agree.  That  Crestien,  with  the 
story  of  Modred's  treachery  and  of  Arthur's  conquests  fresh  in 
mind  after  writing  Cliges  should  have  chosen  to  blend  so-called  his- 
torical facts  with  popular  tradition  in  the  effort  to  give  realistic 
effect  seems  not  improbable.  . 

Yvain 

Wace,  while  enumerating  in  the  Roman  de  Rou  the  heroes  and 
peoples  who  accompanied  Duke  William  to  the  exercise  of  his  ven- 
geance upon  the  unfortunate  Harold,  steps  out  of  the  highway  of 
his  narrative  for  a  moment  to  describe  the  strange  forest  of  Broce- 
liande  which  contributed  forces  to  William's  cause.  Among  those 
who  went  to  England  were : 

Vol.  II  6395    .    .    .    .    .  cil  deyers  Breceliant 
Dune  Bretun  vunt  sovent  fablant, 
Une  forest  mult  lunge  e  lee, 
Qui  en  Bretaigne  est  mult  loee. 
La  funtaine  de  Berentun 

39  Thedens,  op.  cit.,  128,  is  also  of  this  opinion,  but  we  reached  our  conclusions  in- 
dependently. 

40  See  Rom.  XII,  523. 

^Erec  2432-2577,  Yvain  907  ff.;  Perceval  1682  ff. 


64 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Sort  d'une  part  lez  un  perrun 

Aler  suleient  veneiir 

A  Berentun  par  grant  chalur, 

E  a  lur  corz  l'eve  espuisier 

E  le  perrun  desuz  moillier. 

Pur  co  suleient  pluie  aveir; 

Issi  suleit  jadis  ploveir 

En  la  forest  e  envirun 

Mais  jo  ne  sui  par  quel  raison. 

La  suelt  Ten  les  fees  veeir, 

Se  li  Bretun  nus  dient  veir, 

E  altres  merveilles  plusurs; 

Aires  i  suelt  aveir  d'osturs 

E  de  granz  eers  mult  grant  plente; 

Mais  vilain  unt  tut  deserte, 

La  alai  jo  merveilles  querre, 

Vi  la  forest  e  vi  la  terre, 

Merveilles  quis,  mes  ne  trovai, 

Fol  m'en  revinc,  fol  i  alai, 

Fol  i  alai,  fol  m'en  revinc 

Folie  quis,  pur  fol  me  tine. 
As  soon  as  we  reach  the  word  fablant  we  are  at  once  transported 
into  the  realm  of  fancy  and  are  prepared  for  the  rain-bringing  pro- 
perties of  the  fountain  when  its  water  is  poured  upon  the  marvel- 
ous stone, — a  phenomenon,  it  seems,  too  deep  for  "Wace  to  fathom. 

Crestien,  apparently,  has  made  effective  use  of  this  legend  at 
the  beginning  of  his  romance.   Calogrenanz  has  begun  the  story  of 
his  disgrace.   For  an  entire  day,  lonely  as  a  peasant  he  rode : 
181       Parmi  une  forest  espesse. 
Mout  i  ot  voie  felenesse, 
De  ronces  et  d'  espines  plainne; 

*JjL  Jfc  Jfc  Jt,  JZ,  J£-  Jf. 

TV*  TV"  "it"  "JV"  "Tv"  TP 

Tanque  de  la  forest  issi 

Et  ce  fu  an  Broceliande. 
After  his  hospitable  entertainment  by  the  vavasor  and  the  instruc- 
tions of  the  hunchback  herdsman  he  journeys  on  until  nearly  noon 
(411)  when  he  comes  in  sight  of  the  tree  and  the  fountain  so 
carefully  described  by  his  informant.  (370  ff.)  Then  he  essays 
the  adventure. 


EPISODES 


65 


432       La  mervoille  a  veoir  me  plot 

De  la  tanpeste  et  de  l'orage, 

Don  je  ne  me  ting  mie  a  sage ; 

Que  volontiers  m'en  repantisse 

Tot  maintenant,  se  je  po'isse, 

Quant  je  oi  le  perron  crose 

De  l'iaue  au  bacin  arose. 

Mes  trop  an  i  versai,  ce  dot ; 

Que  lors  vi  le  ciel  si  derot 

Que  de  plus  de  quatorze  parz 

Me  feroit  es  iauz  li  esparz, 

Et  les  nues  tot  pesle  mesle 

Gitoient  noif  et  pluie  et  gresle. 

Tant  fu  li  tans  pesmes  et  forz 

Que  cant  foiz  cuidai  estre  morz 

Des  foudres  qu'antor  moi  cheoient 

Et  des  arbres  qui  despecoient. 

Sachiez  que  mout  fui  esmaiiez 

Tant  que  li  tans  fu  rapaiiez. 
The  points  of  coincidence  in  these  episodes  are : 

1.  The  place — Broceliande. 

2.  The  magic  nature  of  fountain  and  stone. 

a.  The  rain  making  properties  of  the  fountain  are  active 

only  after  the  water  has  been  poured  on  the  stone. 

b.  A  sudden  rain  follows  this  act. 

3.  The  disappointment  of  the  seekers. 

4.  The  final  lines  of  the  story :  B  6418 ;  Y  577. 

"Wace  goes  to  the  fountain  hunting  for  marvels,  but  not  find- 
ing any  he  concludes  that  he  went  on  a  fool's  errand.  Calogre- 
nanz  also  goes  purely  to  seek  adventure,  and  getting  well  paid  for 
his  curiosity,  sadly  reflects  that  he  too  went  on  a  fool's  errand. 
After  his  defeat  by  Esclados  li  Ros  he  picks  himself  up  and  returns 
thoughtfully  home,  echoing  the  words  of  the  deceived  Wace : 

577       Einsi  alai,  einsi  reving, 

Au  revenir  por  fol  me  ting. 

There  are,  however,  several  points  of  divergence  in  these  stor- 
ies. "Wace's  fountain  has  a  name,  Berenton.  The  result  of  pour- 
ing water  on  the  stone  is  in  the  Bou  apparently  nothing  more 
than  a  rain;  in  Yvain  it  is  a  violent  storm.    "Wace's  fountain 


66 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


has  a  beneficial  effect  on  vegetation;  huntsmen  in  the  hot  season 
pour  its  water  from  their  horns  upon  the  stone  to  bring  rain. 
Crestien's  fountain  is  harmful  to  vegetation  and  to  man.  Thun- 
derbolts splinter  the  trees  and  the  fury  of  the  snow,  rain  and  hail 
terrifies  Calogrenanz  almost  to  death.  The  birds  that  come  out 
on  the  tree  after  the  storm  seem  here  to  symbolize  a  spirit  of  thanks- 
giving that  the  peril  is  over.  Lastly,  in  Yvain  there  is  an  ultimate 
effect:  the  combat  to  which  Calogrenanz  is  forced  by  the  defender 
of  the  fountain.    The  fountain  of  Berenton  has  no  protector. 

In  spite  of  these  differences  there  is  enough  similarity  between 
the  passages  to  warrant  the  opinion  that  Crestien  has  borrowed 
from  the  Rou,  if  the  episode  were  unique  with  "Wace.  But  the 
fountain  of  Broceliande  is  described  in  mediaeval  Latin  litera- 
ture ; 42  marvelous  stones  and  fountains  with  rain-making  prop- 
erties are  found  in  Celtic  story ; 43  and  there  are  extant,  traces  of  a 
fountain  cult  among  the  gallo-Romans.44  These  facts  have  led 
scholars  to  a  division  of  opinion  on  the  question  of  Crestien's  in- 
debtedness to  Wace  for  this  feature,  Foerster  45  holding  the  affirma- 
tive side  against  Baist,45  Brown  48  and  Kolbing.45  However,  one 
need  not  accept  or  disagree  with  either  of  these  views  entirely.  It 
is  quite  possible  that,  in  the  case  of  the  fountain,  as  with  other 
features  of  popular  tradition  such  as  the  Round  Table,  the  fame  of 
this  celebrated  spring  had  reached  Crestien  through  some  other 
source  than  the  Ron,  and  that  he  knew  the  Rou  account  at  the  same 
time.46  The  latter  may  at  least  have  served  him  as  a  starting  point. 
It  cannot  be  shown  that  Crestien  is  dependent  for  this  episode  en- 
tirely either  upon  Wace  or  upon  some  other  source,  but  the  verbal 
similarity  between  the  closing  lines  of  the  two  passages  is  evident 
without  demonstration  and  certainly  indicates  that  Crestien  must 
have  known  Wace's  account. 

There  is  another  episode  in  Yvain  reminiscent  of  Wace ;  namely, 

42  Yvain,  3rd  ed.,  XXV. 

43  Brown,  A.  0.  L.,  HSN  VIII. 

"Nitze,  MP  III  (1905)  267  ff. ;  VII  (1909)  145  ff.  See  also  in  this  connection 
Miss  L.  B.  Morgan,  MP  VI  (1908)  331  ff. 

45  Yvain,  3rd  ed.,  XXXI; 
ZrP  XXI,  402. 
ESN  VIII,  (1901)  23. 
ZfvL  (N.  F.)  XI,  442. 

48  Professor  Nitze  is  also  of  this  opinion.  MP  III,  274,  n.  2  where  he  says  it  is 
possible  that  Crestien  got  a  hint  of  the  fountain  from  Wace.    See  also  MP  III,  269. 


EPISODES  67 

the  hero's  combat  with  Harpin  de  la  Montaigne  (4182  ff.)  which 
recalls  in  one  respect  Arthur's  fight  with  Dinabuc,  the  giant  of 
Mont  St.-Michel  (Brut  11874  ff.)    Both  Wace  and  Crestien  com- 
pare the  fall  of  the  giant  to  the  fall  of  a  great  oak  tree. 
B  11942    Tel  escrois  fist  al  chaement 

Cume  chaisnes  qui  chiet  par  vent. 
Y  4244      Li  jaianz  chiet,  la  morz  l'asproie; 

Et  se  uns  granz  chasnes  che'ist, 

Ne  cuit  greignor  esfrois  feist 

Que  li  jaianz  fist  au  cheoir. 
Of  course,  since  the  material  for  comparison  is  so  obvious,  this 
simile  may  be  a  stock  figure.   It  is  hard  to  determine  indebtedness 
on  such  a  slight  foundation,  for  this  is  the  only  parallel  in  the  whole 
episode.  However,  the  point  of  similarity  has  seemed  worth  noting. 

The  Conte  du  Oraal 

The  episode  of  King  Rion  of  the  Isles  offers  a  particularly  dif- 
ficult problem,  partly  because  Crestien  makes  only  a  passing  refer- 
ence to  the  incident,  partly  because  of  the  varied  opinions  held 
concerning  the  geographical  question  involved.  .  There  are  three 
matters  to  consider :  the  identification  of  Rion, — the  name  and  per- 
son, the  location  of  his  realm,  and  the  source  of  Crestien 's  allu- 
sion: is  it  a  borrowing  from  Wace,  from  Thomas,  or  from  cur- 
rent tradition? 

When  the  charcoal  burner  is  questioned  by  Perceval  on  the 
road  to  Arthur 's  court,  he  says,  in  giving  the  youth  directions : 
You  will  find  King  Arthur  glad  (823) 47  because  he  has  vanquished 
Rion  of  the  Isles : 

828       Li  rois  Artus  e  tote  s'ost 
S'est  au  roi  Rion  combatuz 
Li  rois  des  Isles  fu  vaincuz 
E  de  c'est  li  rois  Artus  liez. 
1.    The  name.    The  first  clue  to  the  meaning  of  these  lines  is 
through  the  name,  Rion.   The  Brut  relates  (11598)  that  when  Ar- 
thur was  on  his  way  to  meet  the  Romans  he  turned  aside  from  the 
march  to  punish  the  giant  Dinabuc  of  Mont  St.-Michel,  who  had 
forcibly  carried  off  Helena,  the  niece  of  Hoel  of  Brittany.  After 


47  All  citations  are  made  from  the  text  as  printed  by  Baist  unless  otherwise  indicated. 


68 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROEES 


he  had  cut  off  the  monster's  head  he  remarked  that  he  had  never 
before  encountered  a  stronger  giant  except  Riton  (11959).  Then 
follows  the  narrative  of  his  exploit  with  Riton: 
11960    Ritun  aveit  tant  rei  cunquis 
E  venqu  e  ocis  e  pris, 

De  lur  barbes  q'ot  escorchiees  ) 

Ot  unes  pels  apareilliees ; 

Pels  en  ot  fait  a  afubler, 

Mult  deveit  um  Ritun  duter. 

Par  grant  orguil  e  par  fierte, 

Aveit  al  rei  Artus  mande 

Que  la  siue  barbe  escorchast 

E  bunement  li  enveiast; 

E  si  cum  il  plus  forz  esteit, 

E  il  plus  des  altres  valeit, 

La  soe  barbe  enveiereit, 

E  a  ses  pels  orle  fereit. 

E  se  Artus  cuntrediseit 

Ce  que  Ritun  li  requerreit, 

Cors  a  cors  ensamble  venissent, 

E  sol  a  sol  se  cumbatissent ; 

E  li  quels  qui  1'  altre  ocireit 

Ou  qui  vif  vaincre  le  poreit, 

La  barbe  eiist,  prei'st  les  pels 

E  feist  orle  et  tassels. 

Artus  a  lui  se  cumbati 

El  munt  d'  Araive  sil  venqui; 

Les  pels  e  la  barbe  escorcha, 

Unques  puis  Artus  ne  trova 

Gaiant  qui  fust  d'itel  valur 

Ne  dunt  il  eiist  tel  paiir. 
Wace's  story  is  easily  traceable  to  Geoffrey  who  gives  in  con- 
densed form  precisely  the  same  account  (X,  iii).  Here  the  name 
of  the  giant  occurs  as  Rithonem  (ace).  Rhys  48  tells  a  story,  Celtic 
in  origin,  of  a  giant  named  Rhita.49  Two  brothers  who  were  kings 
fell  into  a  long  and  deadly  quarrel  which  was  broken  up  only  by 

48  Celtic  Folklore,  Oxford  1901,  560. 

49  Iola  MSS,  193b.  The  footnote  there  tells  the  reader  that  the  story  was  copied  from 
the  Book  of  Iaco  ab  Dewi. 


EPISODES 


69 


the  appearance  of  Khita  Gawr,  king  of  Wales,  who  attacked  them 
on  the  ground  of  their  being  mad,  conquered  them,  and  shaved  off 
their  beards.  When  the  other  twenty-eight  kings  of  Prydain 50 
heard  of  this  outrage  they  gathered  their  armies  to  take  ven- 
geance on  Rhita,  but  after  a  great  struggle  they  met  with  a  fate 
like  that  of  the  two  brothers.  Then  all  the  neighboring  kings  com- 
bined to  make  war  on  Rhita,  but  they  also  were  vanquished  and 
treated  in  the  same  ignominious  fashion  as  the  thirty  kings  of 
Prydain.  With  the  beards  Rhita  had  a  mantle  made  to  cover  him 
from  head  to  foot — a  mantle  of  no  mean  size  since  he  was  said  to 
be  as  large  as  two  ordinary  men.  Then  Rhita  turned  his  attention 
to  establishing  just  and  equable  laws  between  king  and  king,  and 
one  realm  with  another.51 

The  antagonist  of  Geoffrey's  story  can  be  no  other  than  this 
Rhita  of  Celtic  legend.  The  association  of  the  giant  with  Arthur  is 
quite  natural.  No  one  but  Arthur  could  conquer  a  person  who  had 
arrived  at  such  a  pitch  of  arrogance  as  this  beard-hunting  king. 
The  climax  is  reached  when  Rhita  demands  the  beard  of  Arthur 
himself,  and  the  denomnent  is  inevitable.  The  form  Rhita  is 
Goidelic,'  Rhys  thinks  (p.  564).  He  concludes  from  Geoffrey's 
Rithonem  that  the  old  Welsh  form  was  probably  Rithon.  But  in 
the  Brut  Tysilio  52  and  in  the  Triads  the  name  is  Rhitta.  As  the 
Brut  Tysilio  is  a  Welsh  rendering  of  Geoffrey's  Historia  the  trans- 
lator must  have  understood  Rhitta  to  represent  Geoffrey's  Ritho- 
nem. 

There  certainly  seems  to  be  some  connection  between  the  forms 
Rhita  and  Rithonem  and  the  names  undoubtedly  belong  to  the 
same  person.  As  Wace's  Riton  would  derive  from  the  Latin  accu- 
sative, Rithonem,  and  would  give  Rion  by  loss  of  intervocalic  t, 
phonologically  Rion,  Riton,  and  Rithonem  are  the  same  name.  A 

60  Britain.    See  Loth,  J.,  Mabinogion,  I,  242. 

B1Mab.  II,  289  f.  Three  severe  regulations  for  the  island  of  Prydein.  The  third 
is  that  of  Rhitta  Gawr  the  giant  who  made  for  himself  a  mantle  of  beards  of  kings. 
He  had  them  flayed  off  to  punish  the  kings  for  oppression  and  injustice.  The  Triads 
which  are  late  (see  Mab.  II,  302)  are  evidently  trying  here  to  reconcile  the  two  rather 
contradictory  sides  of  Rhita,  brought  out  in  the  earlier  story. 

62  Translated  into  German  by  San  Marte,  and  published  in  the  volume  containing  the 
HBB  475  ff.  It  was  made  from  the  English  translation  by  Rev.  Peter  Roberts,  the 
Chronicle  of  the  Icings  of  Britain  in  "Collectanea  Cambriea"  1811,  repub.  by  M.  Pope  as 
A  History  of  the  Icings  of  ancient  Britain,  1862.  See  Fletcher,  op.  cit.  117  and  nn., 
and  San  Marte  BRB  LXIX. 


70 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


comparison  of  the  episodes  in  which  the  characters  Rithon-em, 
Riton,  Rhita,  figure  shows  that  they  are  the  same  person.  It  now 
remains  to  see  whether  Crestien's  Rion,  whose  name  is  identical 
with  Ritho-n-em,  Riton  is  also  the  same  person. 

Crestien  tries  to  show  that  Rion  was  a  formidable  enemy  of 
Arthur's,  since  his  downfall  brings  such  evident  rejoicing.  If  - 
we  return  to  the  Brut  passage  we  note,  that  never  before  Arthur 
encountered  Riton  did  he  meet  with  a  foe  of  such  valor,  and  never 
before  did  he  have  such  fear  of  an  opponent.  Arthur's  satisfac- 
tion as  noted  by  Crestien  is  a  natural  consequence  of  the  king's 
state  of  feeling  as  described  by  Wace. 

2.  The  location  of  Rion's  realm.  The  problem  of  locating 
Rion's  realm,  involves  bringing  into  some  sort  of  agreement  the 
testimony  of  the  different  versions  regarding  the  whereabouts  of 
the  giant's  kingdom,  habitation,  or  place  of  combat.53  The  task 
seems  well-nigh  Herculean  since  it  is  not  at  all  certain  that  the 
chroniclers  and  romancers  themselves  knew  exactly  what  they  were 
talking  about.  Consequently  there  has  been  a  great  deal  of  specu- 
lation over  the  matter,  with  no  satisfactory  results.  Indeed  the  re- 
sults are  bound  to  be  unsatisfactory  even  when  based  solely  on  the 
texts,  because  the  readings  are  in  several  cases  far  from  clear. 

The  Conte  du  Graal  (830)  calls  Rion  li  rois  des  Isles.  "Where 
are  these  islands?  In  the  Celtic  story  Rhita  is  king  of  Wales.54 
Geoffrey  has  the  battle  take  place  in  Aravio  Monte. 

The  first  edition  of  the  HRB  by  Ascenius,  Paris,  1508,  reads 
Aram-  in  both  places  where  the  name  occurs:  the  prophecies  of 
Merlin  VII,  iii  (where  it  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  Rion  story) 

B3  For  lack  of  evidence  to  the  contrary  we  may  assume  that  these  are  one  and  the 
same,  unless  we  except  the  Chevalier  as  deus  espees,  and  even  there  it  is  not  clear  that 
the  combat  is  not  fought  in  Ris's  realm.  Ch.  a*  Deus  Espees,  ed.,  Foerster,  Halle,  1877, 
p.  68. 

64  Rhys.  Celtic  Folklore,  563,  says:  "Rhita  is  not  said,  it  is  true,  to  have  been  a 
Gwoydel  (Goidel)  but  he  is  represented  as  ruling  over  Ireland  [The  story  as  Rhys  tells 
it  does  not  show  this],  and  his  name  ...  is  not  Welsh."  Earlier  (pp.  474-9),  he 
says  that  the  giant  Rhita,  Ritta,  Ricca  Gawr,  the  name  is  variously  spelt,  was,  according 
to  a  well  known  tradition,  buried  on  Mount  Snowden.  But  as  the  earliest  record  of  this 
tradition  is  1420  ca.  (Rhys,  p.  474)  no  one  can  tell  whether  the  unwritten  tradition  goes 
much  further  back  or  not,  hence  the  story  cannot  be  trusted  to  throw  light  on  the 
situation  of  Rhita's  habitation  or  battle  ground.  The  name  Ricca  occurs  in  the  Mabino- 
gion,  107,  when  it  is  merely  mentioned,  and  Rita,  as  a  place  name  is  found  five  times 
in  the  Book  of  Llan  Dav.  (Rhys,  478).  San  Marte,  HRB  403  tells  a  story  found  in  the 
Mabinogi  of  Eulhwch  and  Olwen  which  he  calls  "ein  ziemlich  ahnliches  Abenthurer"  to 
the  Rhita  story.  The  gist  of  the  tale  is  that  Kay  and  Bedver  pull  out  the  beard  of  the 
giant  Dillus  Varwawc,  in  order  to  make  a  rope  with  which  to  hold  a  certain  Drudwyn. 
This  episode  may  show  the  effect  of  the  Rhita  tale.    See  p.  96,  this  study. 


EPISODES 


71 


and  in  the  Rion  episode  X,  iii  (San  Marte,  347,  405).  These  two 
forms  seem  to  have  puzzled  Brugger  ZfS  XXVII,  103,  n.  57: 
"Wir  wissen  eben  noch  nieht  was  der  mons  Aramus  (Aravius)  be- 
deutet. "  San  Marte  locates  the  mountain  in  Merionethshire  (405) 
"Es  ist  sehr  wahrscheinlieh  das  Arranvawigebirge  in  Merioneth- 
shire dessen  hochsten  Gipfel,  Arran  Fawddy,  983  Fuss  iiber  die 
Meeresflache  sieh  erhebt. ' ' 

This  looks  as  though  he  inclined  to  the  form  Aram-.  The  oc- 
currence of  the  two  forms  can  be  explained  as  a  paleographic  con- 
fusion, Aramo-Aravio.55  Which  then  was  the  form  used  by  Geoff- 
rey? A  comparison  of  the  MSS  readings  would  be  of  service  here, 
but  the  MSS  are  not  at  present  available.  In  the  meantime  it 
would  be  well  to  observe  how  Geoffrey's  translators  understood  the 
name.  The  Brut  reads  El  mont  d'Araive.  Araive  would  derive 
regularly  from  Aravio.  The  two  variants  cited  by  the  editor  are 
''mont  de  Rave"  (MS  du  Roi,  73  Cange)  and  "mont  d'  Artane" 
(MS  de  l'Ars,  171,  BL)  :  de  Rave  could  be  explained  as  a  paleo- 
graphic error,  the  a  of  Araive  becoming  joined  to  the  preposition 
de,  and  then  being  written  as  e.   Artane  is  not  so  easily  explained. 

As  far  as  the  form  of  the  word  is  concerned  the  evidence  of- 
fered by  Wace  is  in  favor  of  Araive  -  Aravio,  but  this  evidence 
cannot  be  trusted  implicitly.  It  is  unfortunate  that  the  best  MS 
of  the  Brut  (Additional  32125,  Brit.  Museum)  is  still  unpublished.59 

It  was  this  MS  or  one  like  it,  according  to  Imelmann,  which 
La^amon  must  have  used  since  his  readings  of  proper  names  are 
generally  better  than  those  of  the  text  of  "Wace's  Brut.  La^amon's 
Brut,  extant  in  two  MSS,  renders  the  name  as  follows :  MS  A : 57 
"Munte  of  Rauinte";  B : 58  "Monte  of  Ravin." 

A,  Imelmann  says,  is  older,  but  B  is,  on  the  whole,  more  cor- 
rect (op.  cit.  12.)  especially  in  respect  to  proper  names.  Both 
readings,  however,  are  in  favor  of  the  v(u)  form  rather  than  that 

55  A  glance  at  the  editor's  note  on  this  name,  Brut  II,  p.  158,  shows  that  he  evi- 
dently had  before  him  no  other  reading  of  the  HUB  than  "in  Aramo  monte." 

56  See  Imelmann  La)amon,  Versuch  uber  seine  Quellen,  Berlin,  1906,  18.  Possibly 
the  Brut,  which  apparently  once  stood  between  Wace's  and  Lajamon's  Bruts,  might  have 
shed  some  light  on  this  difficulty.  Cf.  O.  Sommer,  Vulgate  Version  of  the  Arthurian 
Romances,  Carnegie  Institute  Pub.,  1909,  vol.  I,  p.  xxii. 

B7Cott.  Calig.  A,  IX. 

MCott.  Otho  C.  XIX,  Brit.  Museum.  The  MSS  are  ed.  by  Sir  Frederick  Madden 
and  printed  in  parallel  columns,  London,  1847,  III,  p.  37. 


72 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


with  m.  Ravin  would  represent  "Wace's  variant,  Rave,  which  we 
saw  probably  goes  back  to  Araive.  In  view  of  this  evidence,  then 
we  may,  for  the  present,  accept  the  Latin  Aravio  rather  than  Aramo 
as  Geoffrey's  original  form.  The  Welsh  translation  of  the  His- 
toria,  the  Brut  Gruff ydd  ab  Arthur  renders  Geoffrey's  "in  Aravio" 
by  Eryri.59  Rhys  says  that  by  this  the  translator  understood 
Aravio  to  mean  Snowden,  in  North  West  Wales.  This  view  is 
supported  by  the  fact  that  in  the  Prophecies  of  Merlin  (ERB 
VII,  iii)  where  Aravio  occurs  it  is  immediately  followed  by  the 
name  of  Wales. 

Thomas,60  who  calls  the  giant  Orguillus,  has  him  dwelling  in 
Africa,  and  traveling  as  far  as  the  marches  of  his  realm  to  do 
battle  with  Arthur.  This  change  of  name  and  location 61  seems 
odd  since  as  Professor  Bedier  says:62  "II  [Thomas]  avait  sous  les 
yeux,  quand  il  rimait  cet  episode,  La  Oeste  as  Bretons  de  Wace." 
Professor  Bedier  offers  no  explanation.  Since  Thomas  has  changed 
both  the  name  and  abode  of  the  giant,  his  testimony  may  now  be 
excluded.  Crestien  could  not  have  borrowed  his  allusion  from  the 
Tristan  because  he  uses  the  name  found  in  Geoffrey  and  Wace, 
and  does  not  tell  the  story,  while  Thomas  tells  the  story,  but  under 
entirely  different  names. 

On  referring  again  to  the  Perceval  passage  we  see  that  a  few 
lines  before  Eion's  name  is  introduced,  Arthur  is  at  Carduel,  a 
castle  situated  on  the  sea  (821).  Perceval  will  find  him  glad  (823) 
because  he  has  vanquished  Rion  of  the  Isles.  This  implies  that 
Arthur  has  come  freshly  from  the  combat.  The  connection  of 
Carduel  with  the  Rion  episode  recalls  the  fact  that  the  beard  story 
is  told  in  the  Chevalier  as  Deus  Espees,63  an  Arthurian  romance 

69  The  text  of  the  Bruts  from  the  Bed  Book  of  Bergest,  ed.,  Rhys  and  Evans,  Oxford, 
1890,  213;  Celtic  Folklore,  562. 

60  Tristan,  ed.,  BSdier,  I,  v.  716. 

61  As  far  as  I  know,  there  seems  to  be  no  precedent,  popular  or  literary,  for  associa- 
ting Arthur  with  Africa.  Acc.  to  Geoffrey  &  Wace  he  at  no  time  went  further  east  than 
the  Alps,  EBB  X,  xiii;  B  13419. 

62  I,  289,  note. 

63  Among  the  later  romances  the  episode  occurs  in  the  following:  Robt.  de  Borron, 
Merlin  (Paris,  P.)  II  192,  318;  Huth  Merlin  (Paris,  G.)  "La  Soc.  des  Ancient  textes" 
I,  202;  Wheatley's  Merlin,  II,  617;  Malory  Morte  d' Arthur,  vol.  I,  BK  I,  74,  II,  75; 
Morte  d'Arthure,  an  Eng.  poem,  (date  1440)  Ed.,  G.  G.  Perry,  London,  1865.  The 
cyclic  romances  show  such  modification  of  the  original  tale  in  the  way  of  additions  and 
inconsistencies  that  it  is  not  worth  while  to  bring  them  into  the  discussion,  for  they 
would  only  complicate  without  helping  a  problem  already  sufficiently  involved. 


EPISODES 


73 


of  unknpwn  authorship,  dated  by  Foerster  64  before  the  middle  of 
the  thirteenth  century.  Thus  it  is  not  too  late  to  be  of  service  here, 
and  in  fact,  is  of  positive  importance  when  we  remember  that  this 
story  is  an  excellent  example  of  Crestien's  influence  on  succeeding 
romancers  and  that  it  stands  especially  close  to  the  Conte  du 
Graal.65a  It  may  show  how  one  of  Crestien's  imitators  understood 
this  passage.  In  this  romance  the  name  of  the  king  (he  does  not 
appear  to  be  a  giant)  is  Ris.  This  form  seems  to  be  the  usual  old 
French  nominative  to  an  accusative  such  as  Ritonem.™*  His  epithet 
is  d'outre  ombre  (across  the  Humber),  208 ;  he  is  called  also  "le  roi 
de  Noroiibellande"  (9253).  At  the  time  that  he  sends  his  insulting 
message  to  Arthur  he  is  engaged  in  besieging  a  vassal  of  Arthur's, 
the  Queen  of  Garadigan  (261)  or  Caradigan  (2540,  2579).'  The 
honor  of  the  combat  •  with  Ris,66  here  transferred  for  technical 
purposes  from  Arthur  to  the  Chevalier  as  Deus  Espees  occurs : 

2132     En  la  forest  

De  Cardueil 

or  rather: 

2141     De  la  forest  en  une  lande 

Loins  montant  as  liues  d'  Irelande 
Demie  liue,  et  ie  coisi 

Par  desous  un  tertre  

The  names,  Carduel  and  Caradigan  require  some  explanation. 
It  is  generally  agreed  67  that  Carduel  is  Carlisle  in  Cumberland. 

"p.  XXXII. 

eBa  See  Thedens,  op.  cit.,  esp.  p.  12  ff. 

Cf.  Schwan-Behrens,  Altfrz.  Gram.  8,  §  289. 

66  The  Wauchier  continuation  of  the  Conte  del  Graal  (Potvin,  III,  13481)  tells  of  a 
certain  Ris  de  Yolen,  une  lande  Les  Carlion  de  hois  enclose.  He  is  an  opponent  of 
King  Cadovalant's  in  a  tourney  at  Arthur's  court.  Brugger  ZfS  XXV,  (1903)  106,  n. 
57  identifies  him  with  Ris  d'outre  Ombre.  As  there  is  absolutely  nothing  to  go  on  but 
the  Ris,  I  do  not  agree  to  this  identification.  Ris  de  Volen  is  not  connected  with  Arthur 
and  he  is  not  hunting  beards.  It  may  be  said  in  >answer  to  this  that  neither  is  Crestien's 
Rion  hunting  beards.  But  Crestien's  Rion  is  a  foe  of  Arthur's  and  his  name  is  identical 
with  that  of  the  giant  in  the  HRB  and  the  Bruts  of  Wace  and  Lajamon.  One  would 
scarcely  be  likely  to  connect  even  Ris  d'outre  Ombre  with  the  beard  hunter  if  we  had 
nothing  to  go  on  but  the  name  Ris. 

m  Brugger  ZfS  XX,  122,  n.  52 ;  "large"  Erec,  298,  n.  Later,  E,  2nd  ed.  1909,  Foer- 
ster seems  uncertain;  see  gloss.,  Carduel;  Hertz,  Spielmanns  Buch,  Stuttgart,  2nd  ed.  1906, 
370  ff.;  Lot,  Rom.  XXVII,  554;  XXVIII,  31;  Loth,  RC  XIII,  499.  For  explanation  of 
the  form  Carduel  see  Brugger  and  Loth,  loc.  cit.  and  Zimmer,  GGA  I  (1890)  525,  who 
agree  that  it  arose  from  the  confusion  of  Carloil  (Carlisle)  and  Carlion,  but  that  it  means 
Carlisle.  The  Carlion  of  the  romances  is  believed  to  be  the  present  Carlion  in  Monmouth- 
shire near  the  border  of  Wales.    Comp.  Henry  of  Huntington  ("Master  of  the  Rolls"  7) 


74 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Cardigan  is  much  less  certain.  Foerster,  (Large  "E,"  298) 
seems  to  agree  with  Zimmer  that  it  is  not  to  be  identified  with  the 
present  town  of  Cardigan,  in  Cardigan  county,  Wales.  Zimmer 
goes  further  (GGA  I  (1890)  595  ff.)  and  suggests  that  Cardigan, 
Caradigan  is  a  corruption  of  Kaer  Agned  (Edinborough)68  the 
mountain,  Agned  of  Nennius's  battle.69  ''Could  not,"  he  says, 
"Karadigan  be  a  corruption  of  Kaer  Agned  just  as  Kar-duel  is  a 
corruption  of  Kaer  Luel?"  The  testimony  of  the  Chevalier  as 
Deus  Espees,  while  it  does  not  show  the  coincidence  of  Caradigan 
with  Edinborough,  at  least  supports  the  theory  of  a  northern  loca- 
tion. 

Crestien's  use  of  Carlion,70  with  two  exceptions,  either  agrees 
with  the  general  theories  or  throws  no  light  on  the  subject  at  all. 
These  exceptions  are  Carduel  en  Gales,  already  discussed  and 
Carlion-Carduel  in  the  Perceval.  Early  in  the  story  Arthur  is  es- 
tablished at  Carduel  (817),  but  later  we  find  him,  without  any 
explanation  for  the  change,  holding  court  at  Carlion  (3965)  and 
swearing : 

"Kairlion  quam  vocamus  Carleuil."  It  is  thus  that  B.  and  L.  explain  Crestien's  puzzling 
Carduel  en  Gales,  Tvain,  7. 

Foerster,  "Large  Tvain,"  n.  to  v.  7  thinks  Crestien  understood  Gales  here  to  mean 
the  whole  territory  formerly  occupied  by  the  Britons,  but  it  is  not  always  safe  to  base 
upon  Crestien's  or  any  other  romancer's  geographical  or  historical  knowledge.  The 
phrase  Carduel  en  Gales  occurs  in  the  chronicles  of  both  Jean  le  Bel  and  Froissart  who 
speak  of  it  as  a  castle  once  occupied  by  Arthur  and  who  locate  it  on  the  river  Tyne.  The 
expression  may  not  be  significant  here  but  may  only  have  been  carried  over  from  the 
romancers.  See  Les  Vrayes  Chroniques  de  Messire  Jean  le  Bel,  pub.,  Polain,  Brussels. 
1863  I,  46;  and  Le  Chronique  de  Jean  Froissart,  Ed.,  S.  Luce,  Paris,  1869,  II,  51. 
Evidence  for  the  northern  locality  of  Carduel  is  found  in  the  lay  of  Lanval  by  Marie  de 
France. 

5  A  Kardoil  surjurnot  li  reis 
Arthur,  li  pruz  e  li  curteis, 
Pur  les  Escoz  e  pur  les  Pis 
Qui  destruieient  le  pais. 
En  (la)  terre  de  Loengre  entroent 
E  mult  suvent  le  damajoent. 
A  la  Pentecuste  en  este 
I  aveit  li  reis  surjurne 
Carlisle  answers  exactly  to  this  description.    Stuart  Glennie,  Arthurian  Localities, 
in  Wheatley's  Merlin  (EE IS)  I,  CIV,  speaks  of  Carleon  on  the  Dee  as  Chester,  and  of 
Kaerliun  as  Dumbarton,  the  Urbs  Legionis  of  Nennius's  ninth  battle.     Possibly  urbs 
legionis  was  a  common  name  for  any  fortified  place. 

88  See  Skene,  Celtic  Scotland  I,  240.    Comp.  p.  141  &  n.  15  of  this  study. 
69  Fletcher,  op.  cit.  16 ;  Giles,  op.  cit.  409  and  n. 

''"Carlion  (L  31)  doubtless  means  the  Monmouthshire  Carlion  since  the  geography 
of  the  Charrete  is  generally  southern  (see  pp.  50  ff.).  Caradigan  occurs  only  in  Erec 
28,  249,  1032,  1088,  1519,  but  there  is  no  clue  as  to  its  location.  These  names  are 
not  found  in  Cliges. 


EPISODES 


75 


4096     Par  Monseignor  saint  Davi 

Que  1  'an  aore  e  prie  an  Gales. 
The  description  of  Car  duel  sor  mer  assis  certainly  distinguishes 
this  place  from  Carlion.71"  And  Gales  and  Saint  Davi  certainly 
identify  Carlion  with  the  Monmouthshire  town,  but  how  account 
for  the  change  from  Carduel  when  there  has  been  no  word  about 
the  removal  of  the  court?  This  apparent  discrepancy  can  be  ex- 
plained by  observing  Crestien 's  seeming  carelessness 71b  in  hand- 
ling the  names  of  Arthur's  residences.  The  poet  seldom  accounts 
for  the  king's  moves  and  still  less  frequently  motives  them.  He 
places  Arthur,  in  the  same  romance,  now  in  one  castle  or  town, 
now  in  another  with  little  or  no  attempt  to  give  a  reason  for  the 
change.  Therefore  we  cannot  prove  confusion  of  names  in  the 
passage  under  discussion  where  Crestien  is  apparently  indif- 
ferent as  to  which  residence  or  how  many  residences  he  may  assign 
to  Arthur  in  the  course  of  a  single  story.72 

To  return  to  the  identification  of  Rion's  realm,  since  the  author 
of  the  Chevalier  as  Deus  Espees  locates  the  combat  with  Rion  a 
half  league  from  the  forest  of  Carduel  it  is  highly  probable  that 
he  got  the  idea  of  Carduel,  as  a  point  of  departure,  from  Crestien.73 
He  did  not  get  it  from  Wace,  as  we  know,  although  he  used  Wace 
for  his  story.7*  Hence  he  must  have  understood  from  the  Perceval 
passage  that  the  combat  occurred  near  Carduel,  and  also  that 
Rion's  realm  was  not  far  from  this  city;  therefore  he  makes  Ris 
king  of  Northumberland.  He  certainly  got  no  hint  of  this  from 
Wace,  nor  apparently  from  any  other  of  his  sources.75  Therefore 

718  Loth,  BO  XVI  (1895)  87,  remarks  that  the  estuaries  such  as  the  Firth  «f 
Forth  or  of  Clyde  were  often  designated  as  the  sea,  esp.  by  Bede.  This  may  explain 
Carduel  sor  mer. 

nb  Exceptions  are  Cliges,  where  Arthur's  moves  are  fully  accounted  for  and  Perceval 
8853,  where  Crestien  says  that  at  Pentecost  the  court  will  be  held  at  Orcanee,  a  promise 
which  he  carries  out  (9065,  9127,  9155). 

"See  Erec  28,  249,  284,  1032,  1088,  1519  ff.,  5282,  6414;  Tvain  7,  2170  ff.,  2680; 
Perceval  334,  2694,  2715,  4117.  Note  the  distinction  observed  by  Gerbert  (Potvin  VI, 
p.  206).  Three  bishops  officiate  at  the  wedding  of  Blanchefleur  and  Perceval:  "L'uns 
fu  li  vesques  de  Cardueil  Et  I'autres  de  Caradigan — E  U  vesques  de  Garlion."  Carlion 
occurs  a  number  of  times  in  Wace's  Brut  3244,  3248,  3253,  10461,  16058,  14264,  etc. 
Carlisle  occurs  there  but  once,  1637,  Kaerleil.  There  is  no  evidence  of  confusion  in  the 
Brut. 

73  See  p.  73  and  Thedens  op.  cit.,  14. 

74  Thedens,  93.  Since  he  used  Wace  this  probably  explains  his  "tertre"  2144,  a  sur- 
vival of  Wace's  "Mont  d'Araive." 

75  Thedens,  op.  cit. 


76  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

it  is  possible  that  Crestien's  islands,  if  they  are  not  works  of  the 
imagination,  were  thought  to  lie  somewhere  off  the  coast  of  Cum- 
berland; or,  if  we  follow  the  testimony  of  the  Oruffydd  ab  Arthur 
(p.  72,  this  study)  somewhere  off  the  coast  of  North  Wales ;  though, 
as  a  matter  of  fact  there  are  no  islands  in  these  localities  that 
would  very  well  fit  the  case. 

The  discussion  of  this  geographical  question  must  inevitably 
have  shown  that  with  mediaeval  historians  and  romancers,  espe- 
cially the  latter,  geography  seems  to  be  an  uncertain  quantity.  "We 
are  not  yet  sure  that  Geoffrey  understood  his  in  Aravio  Monte; 
Wace  is  no  help  in  the  matter  for  he  here  renders  Geoffrey  literally 
and  without  elaboration;  neither  do  we  get  any  assistance  from 
La^amon.  Perhaps  both  Thomas  and  Crestien  departed  from  their 
original  at  this  point  for  the  simple  reason  that  it  was  a  puzzle  to 
them.  The  true  relation  between  Carlion,  Carduel  and  Caradigan 
of  the  romances  is  still  unproved.  The  only  definite  conclusion 
we  can  reach  is  that  the  collective  evidence  points  in  a  general  way 
to  a  northern  locality.  We  cannot  make  the  various  habitations  of 
the  beard  hunter  coincide,  and  it  is  not  necessary  that  we  should. 
There  is  sufficient  similarity  between  the  different  stories  to  show 
their  relation  without  forcing  this  coincidence. 

There  are  one  or  two  other  matters  still  to  bring  forward.  Why 
did  Crestien  make  Rion  particularly  a  roi  des  Isles  when  he  ap- 
parently had  no  precedent  for  so  doing?  There  are  two  possible 
answers  to  this  question.  (1)  Crestien  has  established  Arthur  at 
Carduel  sor  mer.  This  may  have  suggested  making  Rion  king  of 
the  islands  of  the  sea.  (2)  We  may  recall  in  the  very  adventure 
in  which  the  Rion  episode  is  related,  that  Arthur  vanquishes  the 
giant  of  the  island,  Mont  Saint-Michel.  Crestien  could  not  have 
known  one  story  without  the  other,  hence  the  Dinabue  adventure 
may  have  given  him  the  idea  of  making  Rion  an  island  king.  Again, 
if  Crestien  had  the  Riton  episode  before  him  why  did  he  allude 
to  it  only  in  this  brief  fashion?  He  is  thus  unique,  for  every  one 
before  and  after  him  who  has  used  the  incident  tells  the  whole 
story.  For  an  answer  one  must  go  to  Crestien's  technique.  It 
is  not  his  habit  to  relate  anecdotes  about  Arthur.  Arthur  is  al- 
ways, except  in  Cliges,  a  background  figure.  Moreover,  the  first 
half  of  Conte  du  Graal  is  told  with  a  good  deal  of  directness. 


EPISODES 


77 


Crestien  is  here  interested  in  the  psychology  of  his  hero,  he  is  just 
about  to  present  Perceval  at  the  court ;  to  stop  at  this  point  and  re- 
late an  adventure  about  Arthur,  already  past,  -would  be  bad  art. 
The  author  of  the  Chevalier  as  Deus  Espees  has  used  the  Rion 
story  as  a  motif  that  occupies  most  of  the  first  part  of  the  romance. 
The  chroniclers,  whose  duty  is  was  to  celebrate  the  achievements 
of  Arthur,  had  a  good  reason  for  making  much  of  the  story. 
Therefore  Crestien  need  not  be  considered  unusual  because  he 
chose  to  dismiss  Rion  with  a  mere  reference. 

The  original  question  has  now  been  answered:  namely,  the 
source  of  Crestien 's  allusion.  "We  have  seen  that  it  could  not  come 
from  Thomas,  that  it  is  not  likely  to  have  come  from  tradition  be- 
cause Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  appears  to  be  the  first  to  associate 
the  Rhita  story  with  Arthur.  Hence  Arthur's  combat  with  Rion 
must  be  a  literary  transmission  and  according  to  the  evidence  here- 
tofore presented  (pp.  5  ft,)  that  Crestien  made  his  borrowings 
from  Wace  and  not  from  Geoffrey,  the  reference  in  the  Conte  du 
Oraal  probably  owes  its  origin  to  the  Roman  de  Brut. 


\ 


Chapter  III 


Characters 


Few  of  Crestien's  characters  can  be  shown  to  owe  their  being 
solely  to  the  Roman  de  Brut;  some  of  his  most  distinguished  figures 
do  not  appear  in  the  pages  of  the  chronicle  at  all.  But  in  spite  of 
the  presence  of  features  not  traceable  to  the  Brut,  and  of  origins 
impossible  to  determine,  there  are  certain  lesser  figures  and  cer- 
tain traits  in  leading  characters  for  which  "Wace  may  be  considered 
responsible.  It  is  curious  that  the  two  distinct  classes  of  Arthur- 
ian figures,  historic  and  romantic,  extensive  as  they  both  are,  pos- 
sess but  few  characters  in  common.  The  following  table  indicates 
those  found  in  the  Historia,  the  Brut  and  Crestien's  romances. 


H 

Auguselus,1  IX,  ix  if. 
Arturus,  VIII,  xix  ff. 

Beduerus,  IX,  ii  ff. 
Bladud,  II,  viii,  x 

Cadvallo-n-em,  XII,  i,  ff. 

Caj  us,  Cheudo,  IX,  xi,  ff. 

Eventus,5  XI,  i 

G(u)anhumara,  IX,  x  ff. 

Hiderus,  XIV,  v 
Igerna,  VII,  xix,  xx 
Lot,8  VIII,  xxi  ff. 

Merlinus,  VI,  xvii  ff. 


B 

Aguisel,  9856  ff. 
f  Artur,  8966  ff. 
\  Artus 8 

Beduer  -ier-iers-oer 
f  Bladus,  1667 
i  Bladud,  1681  ff. 

Cadvalan 

Cadualan,  14447 

Kex,  10411  ff. 

Kei,  12996 

Yvains,  10522 

Ivain,  13600 

Genievre,  9882 

Yder,  12336,  12346 
Ygerne,  8799  ff. 
Lot,  9056  ff. 

Merlin,9  7555 


Aguisiaus,  E  1970 
Artus  -  Artu2 

Beduiers,  E  1735 
(  Baudemaguz, 
(  Bademaguz,*  L  645  ff. 

Cadovalanz,-E  315,  6816 

Ke 

Keus,  Kew,  E  L  T  P 
Yvains 

Yvain,  E  L  (?)6  Y  P 
Ganievre 7 
Guenievere 
Yder,  E  1046  ff. 
Ygerne,  P  8706 
Lot,  E 1737,  L  6267, 

P  8099,  8715 
Merlin,  E  6693 


1  On  the  name  see  Brugger,  ZfS  XXVIII,  17. 

2  When  the  name  occurs  in  all  the  five  romances,  the  titles  of  the  romances  are 
omitted. 

sOn  the  name  see  Zimmer,  GGA  1890,  818  n.  1;  830,  n.  2.    Both  forms  used  indif- 
ferently for  nom.  &  acc.    Arturs  "Large  E,"  1992,  and  p.  312,  n. 
4  See  pp.  56  ff. 

6  On  the  name,  see  Zimmer  GGA  (1890)  798,  818,  n.  1;  ZfS  XII,  233;  Loth,  RC 
XIII,  (1892)  493;  Lot,  Rom.  XXV  (1896)  1;  BMier,  Rev.  de  deux  mondes  (Oct.  5, 
1891)  848,  n.  1;  Rhys,  Eibbard  Lectures,  London,  1892,  63. 

6  See  p.  98,  n.  68. 

7  Not  mentioned  by  name  in  C  &  P. 

8  On  the  name  see  Loth,  RC  XVI  (1895)  84;  Rhys,  op.  cit.,  125  ff. 
8  See  Brut  I,  p.  352,  n.  c.    On  the  name  see  Zimmer,  ZfS  XII,  253. 


CHARACTERS 


79 


Modredus, 
Modedrius 


IX,  ix  ff. 


Ritho-n-em,  X,  iii 
Urianus,  IX,  ix,  xii ;  XI,  i 
Utherpendragon,  VI,  v  ff. 


Mordret,  11452  ff. 
Nut,  12336 

Pandragon,  7767 
Riton,  11958 
Urien,  9856 
(Uter)pendragon 

1,6597  ff.;  II  8431  ff. 
Gawain(s),  9057  ff. 
W(V)alw(v)ains 


Angres,  C  431  ff. 
Nut,  E  1046, 1213,  6819, 

P  4683  ?10 
Pandragon,  E  1811 
Rion,  P  829 
Uriien  E  Y  P 
Uterpandragon, 
Y  663,  P  425,  8704 

Gauvain(s) 


Walgannus,11  Walguainus, 
Walganius,  IX,  x  ff. 

Erec        —      14  characters 

Cliges      =  4 

Lancelot  =     6-7  " 

Yvain      ='       7  " 

Perceval  =  10-11  " 

Examination  of  the  table  shows  the  following  facts : 

1.  Some  of  Crestien's  most  prominent  figures  are  absent  from 
the  chronicles:  Erec,  Lancelot,  Perceval,  Sagremor. 

2.  Yvain,  one  of  Crestien's  chief  heroes,  is  mentioned  but  once 
by  Geoffrey  and  but  twice  by  Wace. 

3.  Gawain,  together  with  the  king  and  queen,  appears  in 
every  romance. 

4.  More  of  these  characters  are  found  in  Erec  than  in  any  of 
the  other  romances. 

Crestien's  evident  independence  of  Wace  in  character  por- 
trayal is  not  at  all  surprising  when  we  consider  (1)  that  many  of 
these  characters  must  have  come  into  the  French  romances  through 
channels  other  than  the  chronicles;  (2)  that  the  mere  difference  be- 
tween historical  and  romantic  technique  would  be  sufficient  to  di- 
vide Crestien  from  Wace  in  the  actual  presentation  of  character; 
(3)  Crestien's  individuality;  for  in  the  conception  and  portrayal 
of  character  he  is  often  unique. 

The  figures  traceable  wholly  or  in  part  to  the  Brut  are : 
Aguisel.  Aguisel  receives  but  one  brief  mention  from  Cres- 
tien (E  1970)  where  he  is  listed  among  the  guests  at  the  wedding 
of  Erec  and  Enide:  Vint  Aguisiaus  U  rois  d'Escoce.  In  the  chroni- 
cles, Aguisel  is  a  great  figure.  He  is  brother  to  Urien  and  Lot, 
and  like  them  is  re-established  by  Arthur  in  his  ancestral  domain 
(B  9854).  He  is  a  coronation  guest  (B  10516)  and  gives  counsel 
to  Arthur  concerning  the  message  of  the  Roman  emperor  (B 
11235).    He  commands  troops  in  the  last  battle  with  the  Romans 

10  See  p.  102,  n.  73. 

"On  the  name  see  HL  XXX,  29,  n.  1;  Zimmer,  GGA,  1890,  818  n.,  830  n.  2. 


80 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


(B  12761)  and  falls  in  the  war  with  Modred  (B  13549).  Wace's 
only  addition  to  the  Historia  account  is  that  Arthur  was  much 
grieved  over  the  death  of  Aguisel.12  The  appearance  of  Aguisel's 
name  in  Erec  in  the  passage  already  shown  to  be  possibly  indebted 
to  Wace,  (p.  23)  coupled  with  the  verbal  similarity  of  the  line  in 
Erec  to  the  corresponding  line  in  the  Brut  (10519)  points  rather 
clearly  to  the  origin  of  Crestien's  reference.13 

Arthur.  The  personality  of  the  historical 14  Arthur,  arising 
from  obscure  beginnings  in  the  meager  account  of  Nennius,15  grew 
slowly  in  the  hands  of  succeeding  chronicles  16  until  on  reaching 
Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  it  appears  as  a  highly  elaborated  and  fin- 
ished study.  The  Arthur  of  the  Historia  is  a  combination  of  the 
barbaric  chief  and  the  Christian  emperor.  At  the  early  age  of 
fifteen  he  showed  such  unparalleled  strength  and  liberality,  such 
innate  grace  and  goodness  as  to  win  the  love  of  all  (IX,  i).  His 
generosity  is  a  constant  note.  At  his  first  coronation  he  wen 
many  a  follower  by  his  distribution  of  gifts  (IX,  i,  xii).  During 
his  conquest  of  Gaul  even  the  enemy,  dazzled  by  his  munificence, 
deserted  to  him  in  great  numbers.  (IX,  xi)  His  freedom  in  giving 
at  the  grand  coronation  was  unprecedented  even  among  poten- 
tates. All  noble  deeds  he  rewards  lavishly  (IX,  xi,  xiv;  X,  iv). 
In  war  he  displays  such  strategic  skill  and  personal  magnetism  as 
to  draw  men  after  him  into  the  conflict  (IX,  iii,  iv;  X,  vi,  xi).  He 
shows  veneration  of  religious  institutions,  by  carrying  the  image 
of  the  Virgin  into  battle,  IX,  iv)  and  by  having  himself  crowned  a 
second  time  partly  to  observe  Pentecost  the  more  solemnly  (IX, 
xii).  "When  the  Scots  make  an  appeal  to  him  for  their  lives  in  the 
name  of  the  Saints'  relics  and  the  Host,  moved  to  tears,  he  freely 
pardons  them  (IX,  vi).    He  is  shrewd  in  argument  and  eloquent 

12  In  the  Brut  Tysilio  (tr.  San  Marte)  Aguisel  is  Arawn,  son  of  Cynvarch,  549,  and 
according  Ho  the  Myv.  Arch,  he  was  one  of  Arthur's  three  wise  counsellors  (Loth.  Mab. 
II,  2).  Perhaps  this  last  detail  shows  the  influence  of  Geoffrey  on  the  Triads.  Aguisel 
in  the  HBB  is  one  of  Arthur's  counsellors  (IX,  xviii.)    See  Loth,  Mab.  II,  202. 

18  Lot,  Bom.  XXVII  (1898)  555,  is  also  of  this  opinion. 

14  For  theories  concerning  the  mythical  Arthur  see  Rhys,  Studies  in  Arthurian 
Legend,  Oxford,  1891. 

16  Then  Arthur  fought  against  them  [the  Saxons]  in  those  days,  together  with  the 
kings  of  the  Britons,  but  he  himself  was  leader  in  the  battles  (dux  bellorum)  [Battles 
enumerated]  the  twelfth  on  Mount  Badon,  when  Arthur  alone  in  one  day  killed  nine 
hundred  and  sixty  men;  and  in  all  the  battles  he  was  victor.    Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  15. 

16  See  p.  3. 


CHARACTERS 


81 


in  appeal  (IX,  xvi;  X,  vii,  xi).  He  generously  recognizes  the  sup- 
port of  his  retainers  in  war  (X,  vii)  ;  he  makes  wise  appointments 
to  his  dependencies  (IX,  ix,  xi)  ;  he  loves  Gawain  as  a  son  and 
cannot  be  consoled  at  his  death  17  (XI,  ii). 

Although  the  nobility  of  Arthur's  character  is  constantly  ap- 
parent, at  the  same  time  he  possesses  traits  that  might  grace  a 
Tamburlaine.  Armed,  he  presents  a  figure  terrible  in  aspect; 
broken  faith  he  punishes  with  instant  death  (IX,  iii)  ;  invading 
foes  he  treats  with  unparalleled  severity  (IX,  v.  vi).  He  wars  with 
the  ferocity  of  a  lion  whether  in  general  fight  or  in  single  combat, 
and  by  working  himself  up  into  a  rage  he  seems  to  increase  his 
physical  strength  (IX,  iv,  xi).  He  glories  in  the  chance  for  sin- 
gle combat,  (IX,  xi)  and  if  the  advantage  is  not  soon  apparent,  he 
becomes  vexed,  furious,  and  lays  on  with  added  violence  until  he  is 
victor  (X,  iii).  Alone,  he  slays  the  great  giant  of  Mont  Saint- 
Michel,  and  at  the  horrible  sight  of  the  fallen  monster,  bursts  into 
a  fit  of  laughter  (X,  iii).  Inspired  by  the  greatness  of  his  name, 
men  flock  from  all  quarters  to  swell  his  immense  army,  and  king- 
dom after  kingdom  falls  a  prey  to  his  all  embracing  ambition  un- 
til Rome  itself,  unable  to  withstand  the  fury  of  his  onslaught,  suf- 
fers shameful  defeat  (IX,  x,  xi;  X,  xi).  He  is  not  only  invincible 
in  war  but  irresistible  as  the  center  of  his  court  (IX,  xi,  xiii).  He 
fights  the  Saxons  that  he  may  enrich  his  followers  with  their  wealth, 
and  build  up  such  a  court  as  the  world  had  not  then  seen  (IX,  i; 
IX,  xiii) — the  model  for  fashion  and  chivalry,  for  courtesy  and 
largess,  the  gathering  place  of  gallant  knights  and  beautiful 
women  (IX,  xiii).  In  the  eyes  of  Geoffrey,  the  Arthur  whom  he 
has  thus  depicted  is  an  ideal  figure,  the  union  of  every  martial, 
chivalric,  and  Christian  virtue,  a  great  soldier,  a  great  king,  and  a 
great  man.  His  rage  in  war  and  cruelty  to  foes  are  but  necessary 
factors  in  the  make  up  of  the  national  hero  of  early  times. 

In  what  way  does  Wace  add  to  or  modify  Geoffrey's  presenta- 
tion? In  the  main,  the  character  is  developed  on  the  same  gen- 
eral plan,  yet  the  whole  conception  is  gentler.18  Wace's  picture  of 
the  youthful  prince  on  his  coming  into  power  is  worthy  the  emula- 
tion of  a  messire  Gawain. 

17  His  grief  is  more  apparent  in  the  Brut  13506,  13551.  See  pp.  37,  110  &  n. 
101  b;  112.  . 

18  Cp.  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  137. 


82 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


B  9247    Joveneiaus  esteit  de  quinze  ans 
De  sun  aage  forz  e  granz. 
Les  teces  Artus  vus  dirai, 
Neiant  ne  vus  en  mentirai: 
Chevaliers  fu  mult  vertuus, 
Mult  preisanz  e  mult  glorius. 
Cuntre  orgoillus  fu  orgoillus 
E  cuntre  humle  dolz  e  pitus 
Forz  e  hardiz  e  cunquerranz.19 
E  se  besuignus  le  requist, 
S'  aidier  li  pout,  ne  l'eseundist 
Mult  ama  pris,  mult  ama  gloire, 
Mult  volt  sun  fait  metre  en  memoire ;  ■ 
Servir  se  fist  curteisement 
E  mult  se  maintint  noblement 
Tant  cum  il  vesqui  e  regna, 
Tuz  autres  princes  surmunta 
De  curteisie  e  de  pruesce 
E  de  valur  e  de  largesce. 

Arthur  wars  with  the  Saxons  not  from  a  motive  of  self  agrandi- 
zement,  but  in  the  just  desire  to  avenge  the  death  of  his  father 
and  his  uncle.  Wace  makes  no  mention  of  Arthur's  anger  over  the 
slow  progress  of  the  battle  of  Bath  Hill;  he  treats  briefly  Arthur's 
repulse  of  the  king  of  Ireland  who  came  to  aid  the  Scots  (9690), 
but  he  details  very  fully,  the  Scots'  petition  for  money  and  Ar- 
thur's willingness  to  pardon  them  (9700).  "Wace  emphasizes  more 
strongly  than  Geoffrey,  Arthur's  desire  to  give  his  vassals  their 
share  of  glory  in  his  conquests  (11059).  In  Gaul  he  wins  fol- 
lowers not  only  through  his  bounty  but  Tant  pur  sun  sagement 
parler  Tant  pur  la  noblesce  de  lui  Tant  por  paur,  tant  pur  refui 
(10208).  In  Flanders  and  in  Boulogne  he  conducts  his  army 
with  great  prudence  and  does  not  lay  waste  the  country  as  he  does 
in  the  Historia  (10149).  Geoffrey  has  Arthur  in  the  battle  with  the 

19  The  absence  of  rime  here  shows  that  a  line  has  been  omitted,  whether  from  the 
editor's  text  or  from  the  MS  we  cannot  tell.  The  context  of  line  9255  points  to  an 
emission  before  it  rather  than  after  it. 


CHARACTERS 


83 


Romans  slay  a  man  and  a  horse  at  every  blow.  Wace  omits  the 
slaying  of  horses.20    (H  X,  xi,  xxvi.  B  13298). 

If  Arthur  has  here  lost  the  traits  of  the  barbaric  chief,  he  is 
none  the  less  glorious  as  the  imperial  champion  of  chivalry.  His 
courage  is  no  whit  diminished  because  it  is  shorn  of  ferocity.  These 
ruder  characteristics  are  replaced  in  the  Brut  by  a  certain  naive 
egotism.  As  a  youth,  mult  vuelt  sun  fait  metre  en  memoir e  (9259). 
Later,  he  has  himself  crowned  not  to  observe  Pentecost  the  more 
solemnly,  (H  IX,  xii)  but  Pur  ses  richesces  demustrer,  Et  pur 
faire  de  lui  parler  (10455)  ;  and  his  battle  cry  is: 

13283    Jo  sui  Artur  qui  vus  condui, 

Qui  pur  hume  de  champ  ne  fui. 
In  spite  of  such  ingenuous  egotism,  Wace's  Arthur  is  a  refinement 
of  Geoffrey's  hero,  and  is  a  conception  essentially  chivalric. 

In  the  Chronicles  Arthur  dominates  the  whole  of  the  Arthurian 
period;  even  Gawain  is  decidedly  inferior  in  importance.  It  is 
Arthur  himself  who  extends  his  empire  from  the  islands  of  the  far 
North  to  the  Alps  on  the  Southeast.  It  is  Arthur  for  whom  the 
magnificent  coronation  is  held.  Hoel,  Gawain,  Kay,  Bedver  may 
perform  prodigies  of  valor  in  the  Roman  war,  but  it  is  Arthur  who 
at  the  dramatic  moment  rushes  in,  and  by  his  personal  magnetism 
and  sheer  physical  might  saves  the  day  to  the  glory  of  Britain 
and  the  shame  of  Rome. 

The  attitude  of  the  early  metrical  romancers  towards  Arthur 
is  totally  different.  The  cause  of  this  difference  lies  partly  in 
romantic  technique.21  The  great  dramatic  theme  of  Arthurian 
romance  is  the  struggle  on  the  king's  part  to  keep  his  knights 
about  him,  and  on  the  knights'  part  to  go  to  seek  adventure.  The 
result  is  always  the  same;  the  knights  go  and  Arthur  remains.22 
The  hero  is  either  an  Arthurian  knight  already  well  known,  such 
as  Lancelot  or  Gawain  whom  some  motive  draws  away  from  the 
court  at  the  beginning  of  the  story,  or  he  is  an  untried  youth  such 

20  Fletcher  op.  ext.  138,  remarks  that  the  injuring  of  horses  was  not  in  accordance 
with  the  laws  of  chivalry.  Horses,  however,  were  not  equipped  with  protective  armor 
until  the  thirteenth  century,  Schultz,  op.  ext.,  II,  100. 

Cp.  Yvaxn  855-860  where  Crestien  says  that  the  combatants  were  careful  not  to 
wound  their  horses. 

21  See  p.  48,  and  pp.  133  ff. 

^Erec  2282,  4233,  6416,  6495,  Cliges  5082,  Lancelot  89  ff.,  Yvain  2476  ff.,  Per- 
ceval 832,  4040,  4095,  9184. 


84  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CEESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

as  Alexander  or  Perceval,  attracted  to  the  court  in  the  hope  of 
winning  a  name,  and  lured  off  as  soon  as  he  has  made  a  reputation. 
Given  such  conditions,  the  position  of  the  romance  Arthur  is  in- 
evitable. His  function  is  to  keep  intact  a  brilliant  following.  He 
is  no  longer  an  active  figure.23  In  the  romances  of  Crestien  he 
rarely  moves  except  among  his  royal  residences.  Already  the 
ruler  of  an  empire,  his  might  is  established  and  he  is  disturbed 
only  by  private  enemies.  At  least  once  a  dull  echo  reaches  us  of 
past  battles  (P  819) — but  in  the  world  of  these  early  romances  Ar- 
thur rarely  lifts  a  sword. 

In  Erec  Arthur  appears  as  the  pattern  of  a  king  and  knight, 
ruling  in  the  full  consciousness  of  divine  right  and  the  responsibil- 
ities of  a  crown  (E  59,  1769).  He  loves  his  retainers,24  his  treat- 
ment of  women  is  highly  chivalric,25  and  he  speaks  sensibly  (307). 
He  displays  great  largess  at  Erec's  marriage  and  coronation,  and 
in  the  latter  ceremony,  takes  an  active  part.26  The  only  other  oe- 
cupation  in  which  he  seems  to  engage  is  the  chase  at  which  he  is 
found  on  two  occasions  (36,  3942).  The  splendor  of  his  court  is 
mentioned  six  times.27 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  Cliges,  the  romance  most  closely 
related  to  the  Brut,  should  present  Arthur  very  much  in  the  role 
of  the  historical  figure.  Here  and  only  here  is  Arthur  portrayed 
in  the  two-fold  capacity  of  king  and  soldier;  as  the  center  of  an 
illustrious  court  and  as  a  leader  in  military  expeditions.  Not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  he  has  two  heroes  to  manage,  Crestien 
for  once  breaks  the  bonds  of  his  technique  and  allows  Arthur  to 
assume  a  little  of  his  pristine  activity.  His  greatness  and  fame 
are  mentioned  eight  times  28  and  much  more  emphatically  than  in 
Erec.  His  generosity  is  given  great  emphasis.29  Affairs  of  state 
enter  in:  Arthur  makes  a  visit  across  the  sea  to  his  province  of 
Brittany  where  he  is  received  with  joy.30  While  he  is  there,  word 
comes  of  the  revolt  of  Angres  to  whom  he  had  intrusted  the  gov- 

23  Cp.  "Large  E"  XXXIV,  XXXVIII;  E,  2nd  ed.  XVII,  Zimmer  GGA  I  (1890)  523  ff. 

24  308,  1545,  4233,  4299. 

25  341,  1549,  1751,  1830. 

26  2015,  2060,  6661,  6560,  6733,  6810,  6953. 

27  28,  652,  1518,  1691,  3883,  6416. 

28  69,  115,  150,  310,  1093,  2603,  4255,  5026. 

29  1450,  1532,  2425. 

80  422,  438,  See  p.  119  of  this  study. 


CHARACTERS 


85 


ernment  of  Britain  during  his  absence  (1053).  Arthur's  anger 
throughout  this  episode,  culminating  in  his  own  proposition  that 
the  traitors  as  punishment  should  be  ecartele  31  is  worthy  of  the 
epic  rage  of  the  chronicle  Arthur.  Again,  at  the  very  close  of  the 
romance  he  raises  an  armament  to  sail  against  the  Emperor  of 
Constantinople  (6682).  The  fact  that  Arthur  is  thus  prominent  in 
a  narrative  already  encumbered  with  two  heroes  offers  further 
evidence  in  favor  of  Crestien's  indebtedness  to  the  Brut  for  the 
Arthurian  portions  of  the  Cliges  (p.  48). 

The  Arthur  of  Charrete  presents  so  marked  a  contrast  to  the 
Arthur  of  Cliges  that  he  seems  scarcely  to  be  the  same  person.  His 
greatness  receives  but  one  feeble  and  passing  notice,  and  even  that, 
in  the  non-Crestien  portion  (6711).  He  is  practically  never  in  the 
foreground.32<^He  has  become  a  weakling  like  the  degenerate  Char- 
lemagne^3 He  lets  Meliaganz  insult  him  (60,  6174)  and  Kay  out- 
wit him  (84  ff.).  Angered  and  grieved  (184)  he  gives  up  Guine- 
vere to  the  seneschal  and  lets  the  two  ride  away  without  lifting  a 
hand  to  arrest  them.  Arthur  is  here  sacrificed  to  the  more  im- 
portant interests  of  the  story.34  The  motif  takes  the  chief  actors 
away  from  the  court  at  once,  and  keeps  them  distant  nearly  the 
whole  time.  Arthur  is  a  mere  point  of  departure. 

Arthur's  role  in  the  Yvain  is  again  small,  but  at  least  it  allows 
him  to  appear  in  reinstated  dignity.  Here  as  in  Erec  his  chivalric  vir- 
tues are  emphasized :  courtesy,  prowess  ( 1,  2373 ) ,  and  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  li  rois  et  li  sire  Des  rois  et  seignors  del  monde  (2370). 

In  the  Perceval  he  resumes  somewhat  the  personality  of  the 
Charrete  Arthur.  His  fame  has  spread  far  and  wide ; 35  he  is 
graced  with  the  virtues  of  charity,  gentleness,  justice,  but  he  is  a 
very  sober  figure  throughout.    He  is  vexed  at  the  behavior  of  his 

31  1442.  These  lines  may  show  the  influence  of  the  Roland  3960,  even  though  this 
was  a  common  method  of  putting  traitors  to  death,  for  Crestien  calls  Angres  a  traitor 
qui  est  pire  de  Guenelon  (1076). 

32  In  fact  the  scene  is  at  the  court  but  three  times  and  remains  there  but  a  brief 
period:  31,  5320,  6750. 

33 La  Chanson  de  Roland,  46,  690,  3711;  Le  Couronnement  de  Louis,  ed.,  E.  Lang- 
lois,  Paris,  1888. 

34  This  is  a  good  instance  of  the  incongruity  of  material  in  the  Lancelot.  Arthur's 
dignity  is  sacrificed  to  the  demands  of  an  other-world  prince  who  is  however  represented 
as  a  mortal  being.  To  the  king  of  the  dead  even  Arthur  would  naturally  yield,  but  to  a 
rude  interloper  named  Meliaganz  of  the  land  of  Gorre,  Arthur's  submissiveness  is  out  of 
place. 

88  425,  818,  2794,  8082,  8130. 


86 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


vassals  (820),  melancholy  over  the  depredations  of  the  Red  Knight 
(886,  919),  unmoved  by  Perceval's  rude  entrance  (909),  constantly 
irritated  by  Kay  over  whom  he  seems  to  have  no  control,36  and  sad 
and  pensive  over  the  long  absence  of  Gawain  (9184).  As  in  the 
Charrete  he  is  subordinated  to  greater  interests,  but  the  cause  for 
such  depreciation  is  less  apparent  here  than  in  the  Lancelot. 

This  inconsistency  in  the  presentation  of  Arthur's  character 
seems  to  indicate  more  than  one  source  of  influence.  Exactly 
what  originals  Crestien  used  for  his  conception  of  Arthur  besides 
Wace's  history  it  is  not  easy  to  determine.  ^Perhaps  the  inactive 
Arthur  has  been  affected  in  some  measure  by  the  degenerate  Char- 
lemagne of  the  epics,  but  there  is  still  another  possibility.  On  re- 
calling what  has  already  been  said  about  Crestien 's  sources  for 
his  romances,  (pp.  17  f.)  we  find  that  Erec  partly  and  Cliges  almost 
wholly  reflect  literary  origins ;  that  Lancelot  and  Yvain  seem  to  go 
back  to  popular  sources,  mainly;  that  Perceval  points  to  both  in- 
fluences. If  we  may  accept  Crestien 's  statement  (P  66)  that  the 
book  given  him  by  Philip  of  Flanders  contained  the  grail  story,  we 
do  not  have  to  assume  that  it  included  any  mention  of  Arthur  or 
his  court.  The  Arthurian  framework  had  by  the  time  of  the  Per- 
ceval, become  conventional  with  Crestien.  Aside  from  these  state- 
ments there  is  certainly  much  of  popular  origin  in  the  story.37 

Erec  and  Cliges  which,  so  far,  appear  to  have  been  more  close- 
ly influenced  by  the  chronicles  than  have  the  other  romances,  nat- 
urally reflect  to  some  extent  the  historical  Arthur,  while  those  ro- 
mances more  or  less/popular  in  origin  may  go  back  to  stories  in 
which  some  other  hero,  Lancelot,  or  Gawain,  played  the  chief  role. 
Though  the  second  part  of  this  statement  may  apply  also  to  Erec 
and  Cliges,  the  difference  lies  in  the  fact  that  these  two  stories 
have  been  influenced  by  the  historical  conception  of  Arthur  suffi- 
ciently to  check  the  gradually  growing  tendency  of  the  romancer 
to  push  Arthur  into  the  background, — a  tendency  which  becomes 
an  established  habit  in  Crestien 's  later  romances  and  in  those  of 
his  successors.388 

Thus,  the  nature  of  the  original  material  may  have  been  partly 

86  1217,  1253,  2840,  4040,  4076,  4242. 

87  See  p.  17  &  n.  9  and  Paris,  Bom.  XVIII  (1889)  598. 

Ma  The  prose  romancers  conceived  of  Arthur  much  more  in  the  manner  of  the 
chronicles.    See  "Large  E,"  XXXVIII. 


CHARACTERS 


87 


responsible  for  the  position  of  Arthur  in  the  type  of  romance 
that  bears  his  name.  For  technical  reasons  Arthur  was  inevitably 
forced  to  make  way,  often  for  the  hero  of  the  original  story.  His 
fame  was  too  great,  however,  to  admit  of  actual  removal,  hence  he 
was  retained  to  preside  over  a  brilliant  court  where  heroes  are 
attracted  (some  of  whom  were  never  before  associated  with  Ar- 
thur) and  where  they  obtain  distinction  which  without  such  asso- 
ciation they  might  never  have  won  in  the  minds  of  the  audiences 
who  listened  to  their  adventures.  (See  p.  133).  The  presence  of 
Arthur,  then,  gives  unity  to  the  tale  and  social  eclat  to  the  hero. 
Every  mediaeval  romancer,  if  he  wished  to  obtain  recognition  for 
his  story,  hastened  to  connect  his  hero  with  the  court  of  Arthur.38" 

Baudemagus.  (See  pp.  56  if.) 

Bedver.  (See  pp.  31,  96  ff.) 

Cadovalanz.  Li  rois  Cadovalanz  (E  315)  is  mentioned  in  Erec 
as  one  of  the  mellors  barons  de  la  cort  (312)  and  later  (6816)  he 
with  Gawain-and  several  others  goes  to  conduct  Enide  to  her  coro- 
nation. In  the  chronicles  there  is  a  British  king  named  Cadualo- 
n-em  (HRB  XXII,  i  ff.;  Cadvalan39  B  14447)  who  occupies  a 
rather  prominent  place.  He  comes,  however,  after  the  Arthurian 
period.  The  only  similarity  to  Crestien's  figure  is  in  the  name  and 
in  the  fact  that  he  is  a  king.  Cadovalant  (acc.)  could  derive  from 
Cadualan  with  the  addition  of  t  through  analogy  with  other  names 
in  t.  The  presence  of  this  ending  in  the  Erec  (z=ts,  nom.)  seems 
to  have  been  required  by  the  rime,  for  in  both  places  the  name  oc- 
curs as  a  rime  word :  315,  Cadovalanz  -  vaillanz;  6816,  lanz  -  Cado- 
valanz. The  t  of  Cadovalant  may,  however,  be  an  assumption  of 
the  editors.  Cadovalanz  might  have  as  accusative  Cadovalan  (cp. 
an-anz  <  annus).  Thus  in  either  case  it  is  at  least  possible  that 
Crestien  borrowed  his  rois  Cadovalanz  from  the  Brut. 

Kay.  Perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  these  figures  is  Kay. 
Here  as  in  Arthur  contrary  traits  enter  in  to  complicate  the  con- 
ception, and  render  it  strikingly  inconsistent.  Kay  is  one  person 
in  Erec  and  in  Lancelot,40  a  totally  different  person  in  Yvain,  and 

S8b  Besides  Crestien's  romances  see  Le  Bel  Inconnu,  Yder,  Le  Chevalier  as  Deus 
Espees,  and  many  others,  HL  XXX,  14  ff.  For  further  discussion  of  C's  treatment  of 
Arthur,  see  pp.  132  ff. 

w  Variants:   Cadualan,  14476,  14828;  Cavalens,  14565;  Cadualain,  14913. 

10  He  does  not  appear  in  Cliges. 


88 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


a  combination  of  contrasting  qualities  in  Perceval.  Crestien's  first 
romance  presents  the  seneschal  rather  favorably.  He  appears 
first 41  in  amicable  conversation  with  Gawain  over  the  approach  of 
a  strange  knight  with  his  dwarf  and  maid  (1091).  Gawain  sends" 
Kay  to  apprise  the  queen  of  their  arrival,  an  errand  to  which  he 
attends  with  perfect  sweetness  of  temper.  He  comes  upon  the 
scene  but  once  again  42  in  Erec:  in  the  episode  where  he  meets  the 
hero  in  the  forest  and  tries  to  bring  him  to  Arthur  (3959).  The 
seneschal  has  ridden  forth  on  Gawain 's  horse  without  permission 
and  coming  upon  Erec  in  one  of  the  forest  paths,  he  seizes  his 
bridle  rudely  and  addresses  him  without  salutation.  To  Erec's 
angry  protest  at  being  thus  accosted  Kay  replies  graciously : 
3994   "Ne  vous  enuit; 

Car  por  vostre  bien  le  demant. 

Je  voi  et  sai  certainnemant 

Que  bleciez  estes  et  navrez. 

Anquenuit  buen  ostel  avrez. 

Se  avuee  moi  volez  venir. 

Je  vos  f erai  mout  chier  tenir 

Et  enorer  et  aeisier; 

Car  de  repos  avez  mestier. 

Li  rois  Artus  et  la  reine 

Sont  ci  pres  an  une"gaudine 

De  trez  et  de  tantes  logie. 

Par  buene  foi  le  vos  lo  gie, 

Que  vos  an  veigniez  avuec  moi 

Veoir  la  re'ine  et  le  roi, 

Qui  de  vos  grant  joie  feront 

Et  grant  enor  vos  porteront. ' ' 
To  Erec's  ungracious  refusal  of  this  courteous  invitation,  Kay  an- 
swers merely  that  he  is  very  foolish  (4017).  Not  until  Erec  has 
given  a  second  and  very  indignant  refusal  does  Kay  kindle  and 
return  his  defiance  come  hon  plains  de  grant  felonie  (4044).  This 
last  phrase  suggests  that  the  deterioration  of  Kay  had  begun  even 
as  early  as  the  Erec.43    His  ill  humor  under  the  circumstances 

.      41  His  first  appearance  in  character.    His  name  only  is  mentioned  in  317. 

42  His  name  is  merely  mentioned  in  1526,  1739.  Kay  appears  in  1739  as  the 
father  of  Gronosis  qui  mout  sot  de  mal.  From  line  4044  Erec,  and  from  the  Kay  of 
Yvain  and  of  Perceval  we  may  infer  that  Gronosis  came  honestly  by  this  trait. 

43  See  also  p.  93,  n.  50. 


CHARACTERS 


89 


however,  is  quite  justified,  and  to  speak  of  any  one  capable  of  ut- 
tering such  a  gentle  appeal  as  that  which  Kay  has  just  made,  as 
lion  plains  de  grant  felonie  seems  ill-timed.  It  looks  as  though 
Kay  in  this  passage  were  the  victim  of  opposing  influences  from 
without.  After  the  combat  to  which  this  quarrel  leads,  Kay  re- 
ceives his  defeat  quietly,  acknowledges  that  he  had  taken  Ga  wain's 
horse,  and  on  returning  tells  the  whole  story  to  Arthur.  The 
seneschal's  behavior  on  this  occasion  may  not  have  been  altogether 
tactful,  but  there  is  certainly  nothing  despicable  in  it. 

The  Charrete  presents  Kay  very  much  in  the  manner  of  the 
Erec.  Although  it  is  through  the  wiles  of  the  seneschal  that  Gui- 
nevere is  stolen  from  the  court,  he  seems  to  possess  the  love  of  all 
(84  ff.).  On  his  avowal  to  leave  the  king's  service  Arthur  says 
there  is  nothing  in  the  world  that  he  would  not  give  Kay  if  the 
seneschal  would  only  remain  (109).  The  queen,  sent  to  entreat 
him,  actually  drops  on  her  knees  before  him  because  Arthur  will 
never  be  happy  without  Kay's  company.  Can  this  be  the  Kay  of 
Yvainf  (See  infra).  The  disgrace  that  overtakes  the  seneschal 
on  his  departure  with  the  queen,  is  consistent  with  Crestien's  gen- 
eral conception  of  Kay's  soldiership.  Kay  is  never  allowed  to  win 
a  battle.44  In  spite  of  his  trickery,  he  is  later  appointed  to  the 
guardianship  45  of  Guinevere  in  the  castle  of  Baudemaguz  (4539  ff.), 
an  office  performed  if  not  exactly  with  competence,  yet  at  least  in 
good  faith.  It  is  significant  that  the  queen  in  this  episode  speaks  of 
Kay  as  cortois  et  leans 46  (4860).  The  Kay  of  the  Lancelot  has  little 
skill  in  arms,  but  is  clever,  courteous,  loyal,  and  much  beloved  by 
Arthur. 

In  direct  contrast  to  the  conception  in  Erec  and  in  Lancelot 
stands  the  Kay  of  the  Yvain.  He  is  a  veritable  J onsonian  humor  who 
can  speak  only  according  to  his  cue.  He  is  introduced  (69)  mout 
ranponneus  fel  et  poignanz  et  afiteus,  and  his  insulting  remarks  to 

44  Compare  Erec  4050,  Yvain  2254,  Perceval  4266.  Whoever  meets  with  no  success 
in  deeds  of  arms  was  considered  a  coward  and  was  universally  despised  by  his  com- 
panions.   (Schultz  op.  ext.  II,  1.)    Kay  is  always  such  a  butt. 

46  Crestien  does  not  actually  say  that  Kay  has  to  guard  the  queen,  but  he  implies 
as  much. 

46  The  fact  that  Lancelot  takes  up  Kay's  quarrel  with  Meliaganz,  and  offers  to  be 
his  champion  does  not  argue  in  favor  of  his  love  for  Kay,  particularly.  He  does  it  of 
course  to  save  his  own  reputation.  Kay,  we  remember,  has  been  charged  with  illicit 
relations  with  the  queen,  and  the  guilty  Lancelot  protects  the  seneschal  in  order  to  save 
himself. 


90  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Calogrenanz  justify  these  epithets.  His  taunts  bring  on  some  ugly- 
repartee  with  the  queen,  after  which,  Kay  is  silenced  for  the  mo- 
ment by  Calogrenanz  who  in  phrases  plain  but  picturesque  explains 
to  the  company  that  Sir  Kay  speaks  as  his  nature  47  dictates  (115), 
an  idea  that  finds  constant  echo  (131,  591,  612).  He  is  especially  ad- 
dicted to  the  use  of  ramposnes  (630,  894,  1348).  When  Kay  after 
a  sneering  tirade  against  Yvain,  asks  Arthur  for  the  battle  with  the 
new  defender  of  the  fountain  (2228)  and  is  defeated,  it  gives  amuse- 
ment to  all  even  to  Arthur  (2284).  Kay,  de  honte  assomez,  Et  mas 
et  morz  et  desconfiz,  cuts  a  very  different  figure  from  the  Kay  whom 
Gawain  unhorses  in  Erec.  Only  once  can  Crestien  say  anything 
good  of  him: 

635      Bien  set  ancontre  vilenie 

Respondre  san  et  corteisie,  

lines  reminiscent  of  the  courteous  Kay  of  the  Erec.  Thus  the  Kay 
of  Yvain  is  a  spiteful,  quarrelsome  fellow  who  can  never  open  his 
mouth  to  say  a  pleasant  word,  in  consequence  of  which  behavior  he 
has  the  respect  of  none  and  is  frequently  being  put  in  ludicrous 
positions. 

In  the  Kay  of  the  Conte  du  Graal  both  the  good  and  the  evil 
qualities  are  apparent,  though  the  latter  are  more  prominent.  At 
the  outset  Kay  takes  an  unreasonable  prejudice  against  Perceval. 
He  rails  at  the  youth  for  wanting  the  Red  Knight's  armor,  an  af- 
fair in  which  he  is  not  called  upon  to  meddle  (979).  He  strikes  the 
little  maid  who  foretells  Perceval's  renown,  and  kicks  the  fool  into 
the  fire  because  the  latter  prophesies  evil  for  him  on  account  of  his 
venomous  tongue  (1026).  Later  (2834)  Kay  would  insult  the  fool 
but  is  too  cowardly.  Again  and  again  48  does  Arthur  rebuke  him, 
but  to  no  purpose.  Once  the  king  utters  the  sentiment  of  Guinevere 
in  the  Yvain, 

"  That  Kay's  complexity  was  handed  on  to  later  romancers  is  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  the  Livre  d'  Artus,  (1230-1250  acc.  to  G.  Paris)  a  continuation  of  the  Merlin 
story,  attempts  to  redeem  Kay's  character,  by  holding  him  not  responsible  for  his  bitter 
words.  See  Freymond,  ZfS  XVII  (1895),  12  &  n.  2.  See  also  Merlin  I,  pp.  XVIII, 
XXI,  "Soc.  des  anc.  Textes",  where  Paris  thinks  that  the  explanation  given  in  the 
Livre  d'Artus  was  the  invention  of  Robert  de  Boron.  For  other  examples  of  inconsis- 
tency in  the  portrayal  of  Kay  see  Sachse,  HA  XXIX  (1861)  165  ff.  The  queen's  use 
of  Monseignor  in  131  in  speaking  of  Kay  would  seem  to  be  derisive.  On  the  significance 
of  this  title  see  Stowell,  W.  A.,  Old  French  Titles  of  Respect  in  Direct  Address,  Balto., 
1908,  223. 

*8  979,  1217,  1253,  2840,  4076,  4242. 


CHARACTERS 


91 


P  4076    E  Kex  qui  envieus  estoit 
E  est  ancor  et  tozjorz  iert 
Ne  ja  mil  bien  dire  ne  quiert — 
an  idea  repeated  in  4236.    The  constant  reiteration  of  this  note 
here  and  in  Yvain,  leads  to  the  impression  that  Kay  in  these  narra- 
tives is  little  more  than  an  abstraction.   In  the  episode  where  Per- 
ceval, meditating  upon  the  blood-drops  in  the  snow,  is  interrupted 
successively  by  Sagremor,  Kay  and  Gawain  in  their  attempts  to 
bring  him  to  Arthur,  (4126  ff.)  the  seneschal,  bitter  over  his  own 
failure,  taunts  Gawain,  about  to  make  his  trial,  with  being  a  sort  of 
carpet  knight.  Gawain,  he  says,  will  do  battle  in  a  silken  surcoat  in- 
stead of  armor;  he  will  break  no  lance,  but  his  tongue  will  not  fail 
him  (4352).    But  the  Perceval  also  takes  a  markedly  sympathetic 
attitude  towards  the  seneschal.    ( 1 )  Kay  is  handsome  in  appearance 
but  not  in  manners. 

2755     E  Kex  parmi  la  sale  vint 

Trestoz  desafublez  et  tint 

An  sa  main  destre  un  bastonet 

El  chief  un  chapel  de  bonet 

Dont  li  chevol  estoient  blont 

N'ot  plus  bel  chevalier  el  mont 

E  fu  treciez  a  une  tresce 

Mais  sa  biaute  e  sa  proesce 

Empirient  le  felon  gap 

La  cote  f u  d  'un  riche  drap 

De  soie  tote  coloree 

Ceinz  fu  d'une  ceinture  ovree 

Don  la  boclete  et  tuit  li  mambre 

Estoient  d'or  bien  m'an  remambre 

E  l'estiore  ensi  le  tesmoigne. 

Chascuns  de  sa  voie  s  'esloigne 

Si  com  li  vint  parmi  la  sale 

Ses  fellons  gas  sa  lengue  male 

Redotent  tuit  si  li  font  rote 

N'est  mie  sage  qui  ne  dote 

Ou  soit  a  gas  ou  sait  a  certes 

Felenies  trop  descovertes : 

Ces  felons  gas  tant  redotoient 


92  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Trestuit  cil  qui  laenz  estoient 
C'onques  mis  a  lui  ne  parla. 

Nowhere  else  does  Crestien  mention  Kay's  beauty  or  his  prowess. 
How  could  Kay  who  is  too  cowardly  to  insult  a  fool  and  who  never 
wins  a  battle  be  possessed  of  prowess  and  be  called  one  of  the  finest 
knights  in  the  world  ?  We  have  found  him  courteous  and  loyal,  but 
never  expert  in  arms.  These  lines  may  point  to  a  double  source  for 
the  character  of  Kay. 

(2.)    Kay  knows  how  to  be  courteous  if  he  would.49 

4366     Ha  sire  Kex  plus  belemant 
Fait  il  le  me  poissiez  dire. 
The  general  impression  that  we  get  of  Kay  in  Yvain  and  elsewhere 
in  Perceval  is  that  he  does  not  know  how  to  speak  graciously,  that 
his  speech  is  ugly  because  he  cannot  help  himself. 

(3".)  After  Kay's  overthrow  by  Perceval,  Arthur  has  the  best 
physician  and  three  nurses  called  to  attend  him,  for  he  loved  him 
very  much. 

4300     E  li  rois  qui  molt  l'avoit  tandre 
E  molt  l'amoit  an  son  corage 
Li  envoie  un  mire  molt  sage 
E  treis  puceles  de  s'escole. 

These  lines  are  an  echo  of  Arthur's  love  for  Kay  in  the  Charrete. 

Thus  the  Conte  du  Graal  offers  the  final  testimony  as  to  Cres- 
tien's  inconsistency  everywhere  in  the  portrayal  of  this  character/ 
On  the  one  hand  we  have  a  Kay  pleasantly  obliging,  courteous,  hos- 
pitable, though  a  little  impulsive  and  tactless,  handsome,  courageous, 
loyal,  and  greatly  beloved  by  Arthur;  on  the  other,  a  schemer,  a 
mean,  contemptible  weakling,  who  can  never  open  his  mouth  with- 
out a  sneer,  who  boastfully  and  stupidly  takes  battles  upon  himself 
only  to  be  whipped  like  a  fool  amid  the  laughter  and  jeers  of  the 
onlookers. 

How  could  such  an  impossible  combination  of  qualities  have 
come  about?  Two  distinct  influences  must  have  been  active  in  the 
composition  of  Crestien 's  seneschal.  The  origin  of  Kay  of  the  ven- 
omous tongue  has  not  yet  been  conclusively  determined.  G.  Paris 
implies  that  the  first  indication  of  an  unfavorable  conception  is 

*9  Cp.  Yvain  635. 


CHARACTERS 


93 


found  in  Crestien.50  Gradually,  he  says,  Kay's  faults  were  exag- 
gerated until  in  the  later  romances  he  becomes  ' '  un  lache,  un  traitre, 
et  finalement  le  plus  odieux  de  scelerats.  Cette  transformation  est 
complete  dans  les  romans  en  prose."    (HL  xxx,  52). 

Sachse  (op.  cit.  181)  called  attention  to  figures  in  some  of  the 
great  epics  that  perform  the  function  of  a  contrast  figure  or  foil 
piece  in  the  court  in  much  the  same  manner  that  Kay  does  in  the 
Arthurian  romances.  Such  characters  are :  Thersites,  Hagen  and 
Ganelon.51\  To  these  may  be  added  the  mischief-making  Loki  of 
Norse  mythology,  the  boaster  Unferth  of  the  Beoivulf,  the  cowardly 
and  crafty  seneschal  of  Thomas's  Tristan,51*  and  Bricriu  of  the  Bit- 
ter Tongue  in  Irish  heroic  saga.  Since  such  a  character  is  found  in 
the  sagas  of  different  nations  and  periods  we  may  conjecture  that 
it  was  doubtless  regarded  as  part  of  the  epic  equipment,  and  hence 
that  it  may  have  originated  among  different  peoples  independently. 
There  are,  however,  certain  traits  in  the  seneschal  of  the  Tristan 
and  in  Bricriu  which  suggest  an  actual  prototype-for  Kay  of  the 
venomous  tongue. 

The  situation  in  the  Tristan  is  as  follows.52  The  king  of  Ire- 
land has  proclaimed  that  whoever  can  slay  the  devastating  dragon 
shall  have  his  daughter's  hand  and  half  of  his  kingdom.  Each  day 
the  seneschal  arms  himself  in  hopes  of  securing  the  coveted  prize, 
but  his  cowardice  prevents  him  from  ever  meeting  the  dragon  face 
to  face.  The  poet  describes  him  as  outre-cuidant,  mauvais  de  coeur, 
dissimule,  cauteleux,  menteur  et  fourbe  (117).  When  the  slayer 
of  the  dragon  finally  appears  in  the  person  of  Tristan,  the  seneschal 
sees  his  opportunity.  Severing  the  head  of  the  dead  monster  in 
Tristan's  absence  he  loudly  proclaims  himself  victor,  and  as  loudly 
demands  the  reward.  The  king  would  grant  it  according  to  prom- 
ise, but  Isolt  and  the  queen  protest,  the  latter  saying  (123)  "il  est 
un  fou  gonfle  de  demesure,  fourbe  et  de  mauvais  coeur,  sans  plus 

50  HL  XXX,  51.  What  he  actually  says  is  that  the  first  indication  of  an  unfavorable 
conception  is  found  in  the  Tristan  of  Eilhart  von  Oberg  (1175ca);  but  immediately  af- 
terward he  states  that  it  was  not  impossible  for  Eilhart  or  his  French  original  to  have 
known  Crestien.  According  to  Paris's  own  dating,  Tvain,  the  first  of  Crestiens  works  to 
depict  Kay  as  a  markedly  disagreeable  person  could  not  have  been  written  later  than 
1174,  hence  Crestien  may  have  been  the  first  to  picture  Kay  thus. 

Bla  See  p.  137. 

™See  Cliges,  3rd  ed.  1910,  LII. 
B2B6dier,  ed.  I,  117  ff. 


94  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WAGE  ON  CRESTIEN  I>E  TROIES 

de  f oi  qu  'une  f  emme  publique,  ruse  et  envieux,  hai  de  tous  et  couard, 
et  plain  d  'autres  vices  honteux  a  tout  homme  noble. ' ' 

The  deceiver  on  seeing  himself  baffled,  becomes  vexed  and  ironi- 
cal :  "  Nuire  a  ses  amis, ' '  he  says  to  Isolt,  ' '  blamer,  se  montrer  amie 
de  ses  ennemis,  telle  est  bien  la  coutume  des  femmes.  Femme  hait 
qui  1  'aime,  et  convoite  ee  qu  'elle  ne  peut  obtenir,  et  s  'eff orce  vers  ce 
qu'elle  n'obtiendra  jamais,  et  repousse  ce  qu'elle  devrait  aimer." 
(127).  Thinking  himself  safe  he  proposes  a  combat  with  anyone 
who  dares  challenge  the  truth  of  his  assertion  that  he  is  the  slayer 
of  the  dragon.  Tristan  now  steps  in,  and  the  terms  of  combat  are 
agreed  upon.  Before  the  battle  comes  off,  however,  Tristan  in  the 
presence  of  the  court  produces  the  tongue  of  the  dragon  which 
he  had  fortunately  taken  from  the  head  on  departing  from  the 
scene  of  conflict.  The  king  now  sends  for  the  head,  and  when  it  is 
seen  to  be  without  a  tongue  all  are  convinced  of  the  seneschal's 
villainy.  "Alors  chacun  de  tourner  en  derision  et  de  maudire  le 
felon,  et  depuis  il  fut  toujours  et  partout  raille  et  honni,  pour  avoir 
ose  produire  un  tel  mensonge  devant  les  plus  hauts  hommes  et  les 
plus  sages  du  pays. "  (140). 

Although  Crestien's  Kay  can  nowhere  be  accredited  with  a  deed 
similar  to  this,  yet  in  personality  he  certainly  reminds  one  of  the 
Irish  seneschal.  Since  he  ,  deceived  Arthur  in  order  to  carry 
Guinevere  away  from  the  court  he  could  be  called  dissimule,  coute- 
leux,  ruse  and  even  mauvais  de  coeur.  This  latter  epithet  may  be 
applied  also  to  the  Kay  of  Yvain  and  to  the  venomous  tongued  Kay 
of  Perceval.  Since  people  shun  Kay  for  fear  of  his  evil  speech, 
this  implies  that  he  was  hai  de  tout.  (P  2785).  He  may  rightly 
be  called  outre-cuidant  and  gonfle  de  demesure  when  he  insists  that 
Arthur  give  him  the  battle  with  the  defender  of  the  fountain  and 
when  he  asks  to  go  to  meet  the  strange  knight  who  reveals  him- 
self as  Perceval.  His  speeches  to  Guinevere  and  Calogrenanz  in 
Yvain  and  to  Gawain  and  Perceval  in  the  Conte  du  Graal  though 
more  caustic  may  be  put  beside  the  words  of  the  seneschal  to  Isolt. 
Envy  and  cowardice  are  both  counted  among  Kay's  traits.  Fi- 
nally the  ludicrous  situation  in  which  Kay  is  often  placed  after 
his  overthrow  in  a  battle  of  his  own  seeking  is  not  unlike  that  of 
the  Irish  seneschal  who  .finds  his  machinations  brought  to  light 
before  the  whole  court.  It  has  already  been  shown  that  Crestien 
borrowed  from  Thomas  to  a  considerable  extent;  it  is  not  impos- 


CHARACTERS 


95 


sible  that  he  derived  from  this  source  a  hint  for  the  degenerate 
Kay.53 

Another  prototype  for  the  disagreeable  Kay,  especially  for  his 
propensity  to  evil  speech  is,  as  above  noted,  the  Irish  Bricriu.  This 
person,  known  in  Irish  legend  as  Bricriu  of  the  Bitter  Tongue 
figures  conspicuously  in  the  Fled  Bricriend  (Feast  of  Bricriu).54 
His  chief  business  is  to  make  dissension  among  the  heroes.  On 
this  occasion  he  builds  a  grand  house,  and  with  malicious  intent 
invites  all  the  warriors  of  Ulster  and  their  wives  to  partake  of  a 
feast.  They  accept  his  invitation  on  condition  that  as  soon  as 
he  has  laid  out  the  feast  he  remove  himself  from  their  presence 
lest  he  sow  discord  among  them.  Bricriu  complies  with  this  con- 
dition, but  nevertheless  manages  to  play  his  tricks.  He  succeeds, 
in  the  course  of  the  entertainment,  in  getting  each  warrior  aside 
and  telling  him  that  he  alone  is  the  best  hero  of  Ulster;  then  to 
each  woman  he  says  that  she  is  the  wife  of  the  best  hero.  The 
results  are  not  hard  to  imagine.  Though  Kay  is  drawn  by  Cres- 
tien  to  a  much  smaller  scale  than  Bricriu,  still,  in  his  quarrelsome 
habits  and  his  trickery  as  exhibited  in  the  Charrete,  Yvain,  and 
Perceval  he  is  reminiscent  of  the  Irish  hero. 

Crestien's  source  for  the  heroic  Kay  is  perhaps  still  easier  to 
trace.  The  Kay  of  "Welsh  saga  is  in  valor  and  initiative  next  to 
Arthur.  The  Mabinogi  of  Kidhwch  and  Olwen  represents  him  as  a 
very  Odysseus  in  craftiness.55  He  is  possessed  of  supernatural 
powers : 

Kynyr  Keinvarvawc  says  to  his  wife,  "Si  ton  fils  [Kay]  jeune 
femme,  tient  de  moi,  jamais  son  coeur  sera  chaud;  jamais  il  n'y 
aura  de  chaleur  dans  ses  mains — si  est  mon  fils,  il  sera  tetu  .  .  . 
lors  qu'il  portera  un  fardeau,  grand  ou  petit,  on  ne  l'appercevera 
jamais  ni  par  devant  lui  ni  par  derriere:  personne  ne  supportera 
l'eau  et  le  feu  aussi  longtemps  que  lui:  il  n'y  aura  pas  un  serviteur 
ni  un  officier  comme  lui."  (214) 

63  In  the  Roman  de  Tristan  et  Iseut  renouvele  par  J.  Bedier,  Paris,  n.  d.,  p.  60  the 
seneschal  has  a  name,  Agvynguerran  le  Roux.  This  name  reminds  us  of  Anguingerrons, 
seneschal  of  Clamadex  des  Illes  the  oppressor  of  Blanchefleur,  P  1980  ff.  Bedier  says 
in  the  preface  (p.  18)  that  the  chapter,  III,  in  which  this  episode  is  related  is  based  on 
Eilhart  d'Oberg.  According  to  Paris  (See  p.  93,  n.  50)  Eilhart's  Tristan  and  Cres- 
tien's Perceval  were  composed  about  the  same  time  (1175ca,  HL  XXX,  51).  Has  this 
name  been  borrowed  from  one  or  the  other,  and  on  which  side  does  the  obligation  lie? 

M  "Irish  texts  Society"  II,  ed.,  George  Henderson,  London,  1899. 

wLoth,  Mob.  I,  231,  257. 


96 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Again : 

Kei  avait  ce  privilege  qu  'il  pouvait  respirer  neuf  nuits  et  neuf ' 
jours  sous  l'eau;  il  restait  neuf  nuits  et  neuf  jours  sans  dormir 
un  coup  de  l'epee  de  Kei,  aucun  medecin  ne  pouvait  le  guerir; 
c  'etait  un  homme  precieux  que  Kei :  quand  il  plaisait  a  Kei,  il 
devenait  aussi  grand  que  l'arbre  le  plus  eleve  de  la  foret. — 
Quand  la  pluie  tombait  le  plus  dru,  tant  ce  qu'il  tenait  a  la 
main  etait  sec  au-dessus  et  au-dessous,  a  la  distance  d'une 
palme,  si  grande  etait  sa  chaleur  naturelle.56  Elle  tenait  meme 
lieu  de  combustible  a  ses  compagnons,  quand  le  froid  etait  le 
plus  vif."  (225). 

Single-handed  he  can  do  the  work  of  an  army  (266,  268).  In 
the  Dream  of  Rhonabwy  as  a  warrior  he  wins  universal  admiration 
(300).  His  trusted  companion  is  Bedwyr,57  and  Arthur  always  has 
great  hope  of  an  enterprise  in  which  these  two  heroes  take  part68 
(261).  On  one  occasion  Arthur  addresses  him  as  cher  Kei  (199). 
Only  once  does  Kay  become  enraged:  when  he  presents  Arthur 
with  the  leash  made  of  the  beard  of  the  giant  Dillus.  On  receiving 
the  gift  the  king  responds  in  a  taunting  rime : 

Kay  has  made  a  leash  of  the  beard 

Of  Dillus  son  of  Eurei 

Were  he  living,  thy  death  he'd  be.  (269) 

The  story-teller  remarks  here :  So  great  was  Kay 's  wrath  that  the 
warriors  of  the  Island  had  much  trouble  in  making  peace  be- 
tween him  and  Arthur.  Henceforth  Kay  no  longer  went  to  aid 
Arthur  in  time  of  need.  How  old  this  particular  tradition  is  we 
cannot  tell,  but  it  seems  scarcely  probable  that  this  episode  was 
the  starting  point  for  the  conception  of  the  venomous  Kay,  because 
his  anger  here  is  entirely  justifiable,  and  is  of  heroic  proportions 
quite  unlike  the  petty  ill  temper  of  the  romantic  Kay. 

The  Black  Book,  the  Triads,  and  the  Welsh  Bards  from  the 
twelfth  to  the  fifteenth  centuries  all  testify  to  Kay's  great  prowess 

68  This  trait  Kay  shares  with  Cuchulain.  See  GGA,  1890,  517  f.  It  is  in  curious 
contrast  to  the  one  mentioned  in  the  previous  passage,  that  his  heart  should  be  cold,  etc. 

67  226,  259,  261,  266,  268. 

68  Malory  makes  Kay  Arthur's  foster  brother,  and  before  this,  Lajamon  had  made 
Kay  and  Arthur  relatives.    See  Fletcher,  op.  ext.,  159  &  n.  1. 


CHARACTERS 


97 


(Mab,  I,  198,  n.)  and  several  places  in  the  region  of  Snowden  bear 
his  name  today.59 

If  Loth  is  right  in  dating  the  earliest  of  the  Mabinogion,  the 
Dream  of  RJionabwy  not  before  1159,  (Mab.  I,  18)  the  legends 
themselves  as  he  says,  must  go  back  still  earlier,  and  as  Kay  in 
this  redaction  and  in  the  tale  of  Kulhwch  and  Olwen,  also  belong- 
ing to  this  first  period,60  is  represented  as  an  heroic  figure,  the 
probability  is  that  such  was  the  original  conception.  This  view 
finds  support  in  the  fact  that  the  nobler  Kay  is  found  in  a  docu- 
ment written  sometime  before  1159,61  namely :  the  Historia  Regum 
Britanniae  of  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth.  Kay,  prominent  through- 
out the  Arthurian  period,  nowhere  gives  the  slightest  promise  of 
the  vices  that  degrade  him  in  the  French  romances.62  Gawain 
himself  is  scarcely  more  honored.  Kay's  companion  is  Bedver; 
they  are  glorious  peers  scarcely  ever  mentioned  apart.  Arthur 
celebrates  his  conquests  in  Gaul  by  bestowing  Neustria  (Norman- 
dy) on  Bedver  his  butler,  and  Andegavia  (Anjou)  on  Cajus  his 
steward  (IX,  xi).  Together  they  serve  Arthur  at  the  grand  coro- 
nation ( IX,  xii,  xiii. )  When  Arthur  goes  to  combat  with  the  giant 
of  Mont  St.-Michel,  he  departs  privately,  taking  with  him  only 
Kay  and  Bedver  63  (X,  iii).  Like  the  compaignon  of  the  epic  they 
command  a  division  of  the  army  in  the  Roman  war  (X,  vi)  and  by 
their  death  the  Britons  sustain  great  loss  (X,  ix).  In  the  last  bat- 
tle Kay  receives  a  mortal  wound  in  trying  to  avenge  the  death  of 
his  friend.  After  the  victory  Arthur  gives  orders  for  the  honor- 
able burial  of  the  fallen  nobles  among  whom  Kay  and  Bedver  re- 
ceive special  mention  64  (X,  xiii). 

B9Rh£s,  Celtic  Folklore,  565. 

e0Mab.  tr.  Lady  C.  Guest,  (ed.,  A.  Nutt)  London,  1902,  Introd. 

61  See  Fletcher  op.  cit.  45  &  n. — not  later  than  1138. 

62  Zimmer,  ZfS  XIII,  27,  n.  1  remarks  upon  the  great  difference  between  the  Kay 
of  Welsh  saga  and  of  French  Arthurian  romance,  and  says  that  if  the  Arthurian  court 
is  modeled  on  that  of  Charlemagne  and  his  twelve  peers  then  Kay  as  a  foil  figure  is 
parallel  to  Ganelon.  However  he  does  not  think  there  is  resemblance  of  characters.  See 
also  GGA,  1890,  517,  525,  830,  &  n.  1 ;  Freymond,  ZfS  XVII,  11,  &  this  study,  137. 

03  Fletcher  (op.  cit.  91)  says  that  the  association  of  Kay  and  Bedver  with  Arthur  in 
this  expedition  represents  a  trace  of  a  version  in  which  these  persons,  now  subordinates, 
held  the  first  place.  He  points  out  that  a  similar  affair,  that  of  Dillus  Varvawc  in 
Kulhwch  and  Olwen  (Loth,  Mab.  1,  268)  they  still  occupy  the  place  of  principals.  (See 
91,  n.  1  for  bibl.  of  parallels  to  this  story).  Also  see  Fletcher  (111)  for  a  discussion  of 
how  Geoffrey  made  over  the  Celtic  heroes  Kay  and  Bedver  into  great  Norman  nobles. 

61  If  the  earliest  Mabinogion  were  not  written  before  1159  it  is  possible  that  they 
as  well  as  the  Triads  (Mab.  II,  202)  have  been  affected  by  Geoffrey's  Historia.  Arthur's 


98 


THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROTES 


Wace's  additions  to  this  account  are  significant.  Kay,  Ar- 
thur's master  seneschal  was  valiant  and  loyal  (10410)..  He  and 
Bedver  were  very  faithful  and  knew  all  the  king's  counsel  (10419). 
In  describing  the  battles  with  the  Romans,  "Wace  becomes  exclama- 
tory over  the  glorious  deeds  of  Kay  and  Bedver,  and  says  that  their 
very  eagerness  wrought  their  undoing  (12989).  Thus,  accord- 
ing to  record,  no  stain  had  fallen  upon  the  character  of  Kay  by 
the  year  1155,  the  date  of  the  Brut,  or,  to  include  the  early  Mabino- 
gion,  by  the  year  1159. 65 

The  source  of  Crestien's  nobler  Kay  is  now  probably  apparent. 
Both  Crestien  and  Wace  66  speak  of  his  loyalty,  of  his  nearness  to 
Arthur,  of  his  splendid  appearance  as  a  warrior,  of  his  courage  and 
his  kindness.  Unless  we  assume  that  Crestien  got  his  conception 
from  Welsh  tradition,  which  is  not  likely,67  we  may  conclude  that 
the  Brut  is  probably  responsible  for  his  portrayal  of  the  chivalric 
Kay. 

Tvain.  Crestien's  Yvain  li  fiz  Urien  makes  his  first  appear- 
ance in  Erec,  1706  as  one  of  the  Round  Table  knights,  and  per- 
haps also  in  2230,  in  the  tournament  celebrating  the  marriage  of 
Erec  and  Enide.68 


love  of  Kay,  the  association  of  Kay  and  Bedver  as  matchless  warriors,  Arthur's  confi- 
dence in  the  success  of  an  enterprise  led  by  Kay  and  Bedver  (Mab.  I,  261,)  the  effect 
of  Kay's  prowess  on  Arthur's  army  (Mab.  I,  300) — these  facts  are  decidedly  reminis- 
cent of  Geoffrey. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  the  three  later  Mabinogion  parallel  to  some  extent  to 
Crestien's  Erec,  Yvain  and  Perceval  present  the  deteriorated  Kay.  In  Owain,  however, 
he  is  not  painted  in  as  strong  colors  as  in  Yvain.  These  tales,  says  Loth,  Mab.  I,  198,  n. 
1,  have  come  under  French  influence.  Did  the  degenerate  Kay  then  originate  on  French 
soil?    See  also  Zimmer  GO  A,  1890,  525. 

66  Paris  HL  XXX,  51,  says  that  Wace's  account  shows  him  to  have  been  ignorant  of 
the  unfavorable  legends  about  Kay. 

66  CRESTIEN                                        WACE            CRESTIEN  WACE 
L     4860  10410    P    2760   12995 

109  10419    P    2762   " 

P     4300  11600    E    3994  13041 

67  It  must  be  observed  that  the  Mabinogion  Kay  is  drawn  more  in  the  style  of  a  hero 
of  the  folk  epic,  but  Wace's  Kay  is  a  member  of  chivalric  society.  There  is  one  char- 
acteristic of  Kay  present  in  the  Charrete  and  in  Kulhwch  and  Olwen  but  not  in  the  Brut, 
that  is  craftiness.  Kay  of  the  Lancelot  outwits  Arthur,  as  we  have  seen  and  takes 
Guinevere  from  the  court  (84  ff. )  In  K.  &  O.  when  the  shepherd's  wife  in  the  castle  of 
Yspaddaden  Penkawr  goes  to  embrace  him,  he  substitutes  a  log  of  wood  for  his  body  and 
thus  saves  himself  from  being  crushed  to  death  (Mab.  I,  231)  ;  in  the  same  story  he 
passes  himself  off  as  a  furbisher  of  swords,  and  succeeds  in  slaying  the  giant  Gwrnach 
Gawr  (Mab.  I,  257).    This  trait  may  have  come  to  Crestien  through  Welsh  legend. 

68  Foerster  in  his  glossary  identifies  this  Yvain  of  the  tourney  as  the  son  of  Urien, 
but  as  the  knight  is  called  in  this  place  simply  "Yvain"  and  as  there  are  mentioned 


CHARACTERS 


99 


Goeffrey  calls  the  son  of  Urien,  Eventus  and  mentions  him  but 
once  (X,  i).  In  the  war  with  Modred,  Aguisel  is  slain  and  is  suc- 
ceeded in  his  kingdom  of  Albania  by  his  brother  Urien 's  son, 
Eventus  who  afterwards  (postea)  performed  many  famous  ex- 
ploits in  decertationibus.  Just  what  Geoffrey  meant  by  this 
phrase  is  not  clear.  It  would  seem  to  refer  to  the  dissension  be- 
tween Arthur  and  Modred,  yet  that  falls  at  the  very  end  of  the 
Arthurian  period  and  therefore  is  of  short  duration.  And  Yvain's 
name  does  not  occur  again  in  Geoffrey's  book.  Wace  avoids  this 
difficulty  by  substituting : 

B  13605    Ivains  fu  de  mult  grant  valur, 

De  grant  pris  et  de  grant  honur, 
Et  mult  f u  preisiez .... 
Whether  this  praise  of  Yvain  is  due  solely  to  Wace's  original  or 
whether  to  some  tradition  concerning  Yvain  we  cannot  tell,  but 
from  the  particular  terms  in  which  Yvain  is  here  described  and 
from  the  fact  that  he  is  mentioned  in  the  Brut 69  and  not  in  the 
Historia  as  one  of  the  coronation  guests,  it  is  probable  that  "Wace 
knew  more  of  Yvain  than  he  discovered  in  Geoffrey's  history. 

As  the  records  concerning  Yvain's  parentage  do  not  seem  to 
antedate  Geoffrey,  it  is  possible  that  Geoffrey  70  either  invented  the 
relationship  or  got  it  from  tradition.  Probably  the  latter  is  the 
more  likely  conjecture,  since  in  the  Mdbinogion  and  the  Triads 
Owein  ab  Uryen  is  of  frequent  occurrence,71  and  although  these 
documents  may  reflect  the  influence  of  Geoffrey,  yet  the  frequency 
with  which  the  name  occurs  and  the  distinction  of  the  hero  suggest 
that  Yvain's  lineage  was  established  before  Geoffrey's  time. 

Possibly  Crestien's  Yvain  may  owe  something  of  his  valorous 
and  courteous  nature  to  the  words  of  Wace  above  quoted.    In  one 


in  the  narrative  besides  the  son  of  Urien  three'  other  persons  by  this  name,  all  members 
of  Arthur's  circle,  it  is  impossible  to  tell  which  particular  Yvain  is  meant  in  2230.  These 
Yvains  are  listed  among  the  Round  Table  Knights  in  the  passage  'where  Yvain  li  fiz 
Urien  occurs:  Yvains  de  Loenel  1707;  Yvains  li  Avoutre  1708;  Yvain(s)  de  Cavaliot 
1709.  With  the  exception  of  Yvains  li  Avoutre,  Crestien  does  not  mention  these  persons 
again.  Yvain  li  Avoutre  appears  as  the  brother  of  Yvain  the  son  of  Urien  in  the 
Perceval  8121.  He  is  not  a  brother  germain,  however,  whence  his  name  Avoutre.  He, 
together  with  his  brother  is  represented  as  Molt  preu  molt  sage  e  molt  cortois  (8127). 

69  10521    De  Moroif  Uriens  li  rois  Et  Yvains  ses  fiz  li  cortois. 

™Mab.  I,  18. 

71  Owein  and  Lunet,  Mab.  II,  2.  The  Dream  of  Rhonabvjy,  Mab.  I,  303.  Triads 
205,  216,  260,  281  &  n.  5. 


100  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

of  the  two  cases  where  Yvain  is  mentioned  exclusive  of  the  Cheva- 
lier au  Lion  he  is  called  li  cortois  li  Men  afeitiez  (P  8117)  and 
tant  sage  e  tant  cortois  (P  8120)  ;  and  throughout  the  fountain 
story  he  acts  in  accord  with  the  virtues  attributed  to  him  by  the 
Brut.  Lunete  recognizes  him  as  a  prodon  (999)  and  tells  Laudine: 
1606  Et  aussi  buen  seignor  vos  rande 
Si  com  il  est  poesteis 

The  lady  herself  calls  him  mout  frans  (1517)  and  again  she  says 
2119     N'onques  mes  certes  nel  conui, 

S'ai  mout  o'i  parler  de  lui. 

Si  hauz  hon  est,  ce  sachiez  bien, 

Con  li  fiz  au  roi  Uriien. 

Sanz  ce,  qu'il  est  de  haut  parage, 

Est  il  de  si  grant  vasselage, 

Et  tant  a  corteisie  et  san 

Que  desloer  nel  me  doit  l'an. 

De  mon  seignor  Yvain,  ce  cuit, 

Avez  bien  oi'  parler  tuit, 

Et  ce  est  il,  qui  me  requiert. 

Plus  haut  seignor,  qu'a  moi  n'afiert 

Avrai  au  jor  que  ce  sera. 
Laudine  and  Gawain  speak  of  his  cortoisie  (1295,  2210)  and  Cres- 
tien  introduces  him  on  one  occasion  as  mout  preuz  et  cortois  (6230). 
He  is  constantly  the  champion  of  the  oppressed.  He  avenges  his 
cousin  germain,  Calogrenanz,  (581)  he  rescues  Lunete  from  her 
accusers  (3750,  4566)  ;  in  the  quarrel  of  the  two  sisters  over  their 
inheritance  he  becomes  the  champion  of  the  younger  (4815,  5098). 
He  rescues  Gawain 's  niece  from  the  giant  Harpin  de  la  Mon- 
taigne (4135).  In  the  Pesme  Aventure,  touched  by  the  sight  of 
the  wretched  maidens  he  essays  the  adventure  (5107).  Through- 
out he  is  the  compainz  of  Gawain  and  their  mutual  devotion  is 
marked.72  Of  course  it  is  highly  conventional  to  endow  the  hero 
of  romance  with  all  noble  qualities,  yet  the  fact  remains  that  Wace 's 
Yvain  is  possessed  of  the  very  same  traits  as  the  Chevalier  au 
Lion  and  thus  the  Brut  may  in  some  measure  have  influenced  Cres- 
tien's  conception  of  Yvains  li  fiz  Urien. 

Guinevere.    Crestien's  portrayal  of  Guinevere  like  that  of  Ar- 

72  2484,  4045,  6160,  6275,  6475. 


CHARACTERS 


101 


thur  is  highly  inconsistent.  In  Erec,  Gliges  and  Perceval  she  is  a 
paragon  of  virtue.  She  is  franche  et  sage  and  speaks  cortoisement, 
(E  1206)  and  is  distinguished  by  her  generous  treatment  of  Enide 
(1535,  1681,  1764).  She  is  the  guiding  genius  of  Alexander  and 
Soredamors  and  directs  their  passion  to  its  legitimate  end  (C  2279). 
Gawain  in  the  Perceval  speaks  of  her  as  his  dame  and  amie  (9090) 
and  makes  her  the  subject  of  a  noble  encomium. 
8140     Certes  dame  tant  est  cortoise 

E  tant  est  bele  et  tant  est  sage 

Que  dex  ne  fist  loi  ne  lengage 

Ou  lan  trovast  si  sage  dame ; 

Puis  que  dex  la  premiere  fame 

Ot  de  la  coste  Adan  formee 

Ne  fu  dame  se  renomee; 

E  ele  le  doit  mult  bien  estre 

Qu'ausins  come  li  sages  mestre 

Les  petiz  anfanz  andoctrine 

Ausi  ma  dame  le  reine 

Tot  le  monde  anseigne  e  aprant 

Que  le  li  toz  li  biens  descent 

Car  de  li  vient  e  de  li  muet 

De  me  dame  partir  ne  puet 

Nus  qui  des  conselliez  san  aut  - 

Qu  'ele  set  bien  que  chascuns  vaut 

Et  que  an  doit  a  chascun  fere 

Por  ce  qu'ele  li  doie  plere. 

Nus  horn  bien  ne  enor  ne  fait 

A  cui  ma  dame  apris  ne  l'ait 

Ne  ja  nus  n'iert  si  desheitiez 

Qui  de  ma  dame  parte  iriez. 
Nowhere  else  does  Crestien  describe  the  queen  so  generously. 

On  the  other  hand  in  Yvain  she  is  far  from  attractive.  The 
coarseness  of  her  addresses  to  Kay  and  her  reception  of  his  rude 
rejoinders  produce  anything  but  a  pleasing  impression  (86,  125, 
612).  This  conception,  possibly  colored  by  contemporary  manners, 
is  not  in  accord  with  Crestien 's  portrayal  of  Guinevere  anywhere 
else. 

A  third  picture  of  Guinevere  is  given  in  the  Charrete  which  tale 
exploits  her  liaison  with  Lancelot.   Here  artistically,  she  is  at  once 


102  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

superior  to  the  Guinevere  of  the  other  romances,  because,  as  the 
heroine,  she  receives  from  the  poet  the  attention  that  lifts  her  from 
the  position  of  a  mere  figure  to  the  dignity  of  a  character ;  but  ethi- 
cally, of  course,  she  is  not  consistent  with  Crestien's  other  con- 
ceptions. 

Aside  from  the  Modred  incident  we  learn  little  of  Guinevere 
from  the  Chronicles.  Geoffrey  has  her  descended  from  a  noble 
Roman  family,  and  excelling  all  the  women  of  the  island  in  beauty 
(IX,  ix)  "Wace  adds  that  she  was  courteous  (9884) 

9892     Mult  fu  large  e  bele  parliere; 
Artur  l'ama  mult  e  ot  chiere. 
Guinevere's  amour  with  Modred  has  already  been  discussed  (pp. 
61  ff.).  This  episode  as  we  have  seen  may  have  been  the  starting 
point  for  Crestien's  conception  of  the  queen  of  the  Charrete  but  the 
indebtedness  can  be  no  greater  than  that.    Thus,  Guinevere  of  the 
Lancelot  is  apparently  the  only  Guinevere  likely  to  have  been  in- 
fluenced by  the  Brut.    The  attributes  of  the  queen  in  Erec  and  in 
Perceval  may  possibly  have  been  suggested  by  Wace's  lines,  but 
Guinevere's  position  as  the  consort  of  Arthur  would  cause  these 
virtues  to  be  given  her  inevitably. 
Yder  son  of  Nut 

Yders  li  fiz  Nut  appears  first  as  Erec's  arrogant  rival  in  the 
sparrow-hawk  adventure  (138  ff).  After  his  defeat  when  he  goes 
at  Erec's  bidding  to  surrender  himself  to  the  queen  (1183)  he  loses 
his  pride  and  haughtiness ;  later  he  appears  as  a  member  of  Ar- 
thurian society  when  he  attends  the  queen  and  Enide  at  the  corona- 
tion (6819).  Crestien  does  not  mention  him  in  any  other  romance.73 

Yder  occurs  as  Hiderus  in  the  HRB  (X,  iv),  where  he  is  not  dis- 
tinguished, however,  as  the  son  of  Nut.  Here  he  advances  with  re- 
inforcements to  aid  the  Britons  under  Gawain,  who  has  brought  on  a 
battle  with  the  Romans.  Wace  has  Arthur  send  Yder  the  son  of 
Nut  to  the  assistance  of  Gawain 's  troops  (12336). 

Crestien's  Yder  has  in  common  with  the  Yder  of  the  Brut  these 

78  There  are  two  other  Yder's  in  Erec:  Li  rois  Yders,  313,  and  Yders  del  Mont 
Dolereus,  1724.  Li  rois  Yders  seems  to  appear  in  Lancelot,  also,  5823.  These  persons 
do  not  appear  to  be  connected  with  Yder  son  of  Nut  (See  "Large  E ,"  302).  There  is  a 
Nut  mentioned  in  Perceval  as  the  father  of  Giuflez,  a  knight  who  is  to  essay  the  adven- 
ture of  Montesclere  (4683),  but  there  is  nothing  here  to  show  that  this  Nut  is  the  father 
of  Yder.  In  Erec,  1728,  there  is  a  Girfiez  son  of  Do  who  may  be  the  same  person  as 
Giuflez  son  of  Nut,  or  he  may  be  connected  with  the  celebrated  Gwydyon  ab  Don  (Loth, 
Mab.  I,  120,  n.  2). 


CHARACTERS 


103 


features :  he  is  the  son  of  Nut  and  is  an  Arthurian  knight.  Further 
than  this  he  cannot  be  connected  with  the  legendary,  historical  or 
the  romantic  Yder.7* 

In  romance,  Yder 's  achievements  are  the  fight  with  the  bear  and 
the  fight  with  the  giants,  and  his  love  of  Guinevere.75  The  first 
record  we  have  of  the  giant  incident  is  that  by  William  of  Malmes- 
bury  (1060?  -  1143).  Here,  Yder  disappears  after  the  combat  and 
Arthur  thinking  him  dead,  has  mass  sung  for  him  at  Gastonbury.78 

In  the  Mabinogi  of  Geraint  and  Enide  Yder  (Edern)  performs 
the  same  part  as  in  Erec,  but  in  the1  older  tales  he  is  presented  more 
favorably.  Kulhwch  and  Olwen  mentions  him  as  an  Arthurian 
knight  {Mob.  I,  203).  In  the  Dream  of  Rhonabwy  he  commands 
an  army  of  men  of  Denmark77  (I,  300).  Here  he  is  also  one  of 
Arthur's  counsellors.  Therefore,  Crestieh's  treatment  of  Yder 
seems  to  be  for  the  most  part  independent.  There  seems  to  be  no 
precedent  for  connecting  him  with  the  Sparrow-hawk  adventure, 
but  the  association  of  Yder  with  the  court  of  Arthur  may  have 
developed  from  Wace. 

Everywhere  in  the  Welsh  stories  Edern  is  called  the  son  of 
Nudd.78  According  to  Zimmer,  the  original  of  this  name  is  Nu.10 
Crestien's  rimes  would  seem  to  attest  such  a  view:  Erec  1213,  Nut- 
reconut;  6819,  Nut-corut.  According  to  Rhys,808  the  Goidelic  form 
of  the  name  is  Nuada,  the  Brythonic,  found  in  Latin  inscriptions, 
is  Nodens-Nodentis.80"   It  survives  in  Welsh  literature  as  Nud,  but 

-  71  See  Gelzer,  Einleitung  zur  einer  altfz.  Yder  romans,  Strasbourg,  1908,  46. 
75  See  Gelzer,  op.  ext.,  45;  HL  XXX,  200  f.;  Rom.  XV,  565. 

78  See  Be  Antiq.  Glaston,  eccles.  Migne,  Patul.  lat.  t.  179,  col.  1701.  G.  Paris, 
HL  XXX,  199,  thinks  Wm's  account  was  borrowed  from  a  chivalric  romance  contem- 
porary with  or  anterior  to  his  work.  Lot,  Rom.  XXVII,  52,  considers  the  account  an 
interpolation.  See  also  568,  n.  2,  where  he  calls  attention  to  Paris's  error  (loc.  cit.) 
in  stating  that  Yder  was  killed  and  buried  at  Glastonb.  Baist,  ZrP  IX  (1885)  326, 
thinks  it  genuine. 

77  Perhaps  this  is  another  evidence  of  Geoffrey's  influence  on  the  Mabinogion.  The 
HRB  represents  Arthur  as  conquering  Dacia  (Denmark)  IX,  xi.  That  Edern,  an 
Arthurian  knight,  should  be  leading  an  army  of  Denmark  may  go  back  to  Geoffrey's 
account. 

78  There  are  several  Nudd's  in  the  Mabinogion:  Nudd  the  father  of  Edern,  Gwynn, 
and  Owein  (I,  252,  n.  2)  Nudd  Hoel  ab  Senaullt  (II,  219,  n.  5,  236,  296);  and  in  the 
Triads,  Nudd  ab  Keidiaw  (II,  296,  n.  2).  This  last  Nudd,  says  Loth,  has  been  confused 
with  Nudd  Hoel  ab.  S.  and  in  every  case  with  Nudd  the  god  Nodens,  father  of  Gwynn 
[and  of  Edern,  too,  apparently]. 

™ZfS  XIII  (1891)  50. 

80a  Hibbard  Lectures,  London,  1892,  125  ff. 
«<»>  See  Mab.  I,  252,  n.  2. 


104  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

the  person  seems  to  be  a  different  character  from  Nuada.  The  more 
complete  counterpart  of  Nuada  is  the  mythical  Welsh  king  Llud 
Llawereint,  or  silverhanded.  The  early  form  of  this  name  would  be 
Lodens.  Lodens  thus  appears  as  a  modification  of  Nodens;  hence 
the  Irish  Nuada  gives  the  Welsh  NM  and  Lud,  two  distinct  per- 
sons. Lodens  gives  Lothus,  Loth,  or  Lot  of  the  Arthurian  romances. 
(See  p.  105). 

The  development  of  these  characters  may  throw  light  on  the 
growth  of  Arthurian  story.  The  Irish  Nuada  (Rhys,  119)  was  king 
of  a  mythical  colony  called  the  Tuatha  De  Danann  who  took  pos- 
session of  Erin  in  early  times,  and  who  formed  a  group  of  divini- 
ties worshiped  by  the  ancient  Goidels.  Nud  and  Lud,  counterparts 
of  Nuada  in  Welsh  literature,  appear  in  Arthurian  romance  as  mor- 
tals seemingly.  Yder  Son  of  Nut  commands  an  army  of  Denmark 
and  is  buried  at  Glastonbury,  Lot  is  king  of  Londonesia  (Lothian) 
and  is  the  father  of  Gawain.  Here  we  may  trace  (1)  a  mythologi- 
cal beginning,  (2)  the  transition  from  divinity  to  mortal  (3)  asso- 
ciation with  Arthurian  story,  (4)  the  localizing  of  Arthurian  story 
in  the  North  and  finally  in  the  South.81 

Ygerne.  All  that  we  learn  from  Crestien  about  Ygerne  is  this: 
She  is  the  mother  of  Arthur;  (P  8697)  he  has  not  seen  her  for  more 
than  sixty  years.  When  Uther  Pendragon,  his  father,  was  buried, 
the  queen,  Ygerne,  came  into  this  country  (the  land  of  the  Castle 
Marvelous)  with  her  treasure  and  shut  herself  up  in  the  castle  and 
in  the  palace.  She  is  represented  as  a  gracious  lady,  who,  when 
Gawain  arrives  makes  him  lord  of  the  castle  (8057).  Her  name  is 
mentioned  by  Crestien  nowhere  else. 

According  to  the  well  known  story  (HRB  VIII,  xix),  Ygerne  is 
the  mother  of  Arthur  and  Anna  by  Uther,  who,  becoming  enamored 
of  her  beauty  at  the  Easter  festival  when  he  was  holding  High  Court 
in  London,  later,  with  Merlin's  aid,  wrests  her  from  her  lawful  hus- 
band, Gorlois  Duke  of  Cornwall,  indirectly  causes  the  latter 's  death 
and  then  takes  her  in  formal  marriage. 

Wace's  principal  additions  are  that  Ygerne  besides  being  beau- 
tiful was  sage  and  of  mult  halt  parage;  (8801)  and  a  general 
enlivening  of  the  narrative.  Wace 's  foundation  for  the  above  state- 
ment may  have  come  from  Welsh  tradition.   The  Brut  Tysilio  calls 

81  Cp.  with  Zimmer's  theory  of  origin  of  the  historical  Arthur  in  the  North,  GO  A, 
1890,  817  ff. 


CHARACTERS 


105 


Ygerne,  Eigr  and  makes  her  the  daughter  of  Amlawdd  the  Great 
(San  Marte,  541).  In  the  Welsh  genealogy  of  saints  of  the  Isle  of 
Britain,  Amlawdd  Wledie  is  mentioned  as  the  father  of  Tywanwedd 
or  Dwywanwedd  who  was  mother  of  several  saints  {Mob.  I,  185, 
n.  2.)  This  detail,  the  providing  of  Ygerne  with  Amlawdd  Wledie  as 
a  father  is  found,  according  to  the  Myr.  Arch.  587,  in  a  Welsh  ver- 
sion 500  years  old,  of  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth.  This  MS  gives  for 
Gorlois  the  form  Gorloes  which,  as  Loth  remarks,  is  more  correct 
and  nearer  the  Cornish  form  than  Gwrlois  of  the  Brut  Tysilio.  The 
significance  of  this  testimony  is  that  Eigr's  or  Ygerne 's  parentage 
seems  to  have  been  a  matter  of  very  early  tradition  and  may  explain 
Wace's  mult  halt  parage.  Apparently  there  is  no  evidence  to  show 
that  Ygerne 's  connection  with  Uther  dates  earlier  than  the  Histo- 
ria;  82  hence  the  incident  may  be  regarded  as  a  chronicle  transmis- 
sion, and  Crestien,  as  having  obtained  Arthur 's  pedigree  from  Wace. 

Lot.  Among  the  Round  Table  knights  listed  in  Erec  occurs  the 
name,  Loz  li  rois  (1737) .  The  next  occurrence  is  in  Yvain.  Gawain 
says  to  Yvain :  Gauvains  ai  non  fiz  li  roi  Lot  ( 6267 ) .  We  last  meet 
with  Lot's  name  in  Perceval  (8099)  where  Gawain  tells  the  queen 
of  the  Marvelous  Castle  that  Lot  had  four  sons  of  whom  he  was 
the  eldest,  and  a  little  later  (8713)  Gawain  hears  that  his  own 
mother,  the  wife  of  Lot  is  one  of  the  queens  of  this  castle.  Thus, 
all  we  learn  of  Lot  from  Crestien  is  that  he  was  an  Arthurian 
knight  and  father  of  Gawain. 

Historically,  Lot  was  a  person  of  distinction.  He  rules  over 
Londonesia,  a  district  comprising  the  modern  counties  of  Berwick, 
Roxburgh,  and  Lothian,83  and  he  marries  Anne,  the  sister  of  Ar- 
thur, by  whom  he  has  two  sons,  Modred  and  Gawain.84  Arthur 
reestablishes  Lot  in  his  ancestral  territory.  Next,  he  sets  out  to 
conquer  Norway  that  he  may  secure  this  land  for  Lot,  his  sister's 
husband  (IX,  xi).  He  is  here  represented  as  the  nephew  of  Siche- 
lin,  king  of  Norway  who  had  died,  leaving  the  throne  to  his  nephew. 
The  Norwegians  contest  the  appointment,  but  Arthur  quickly  sub- 
duing them,  puts  Lot  in  power.85   Again  in  the  same  chapter,  we 

82  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  90,  thinks  it  based  on  a  wide  spread  folktale  which  appears  in 
the  classic  story  of  Jupiter  and  Alcmena.    Cp.  also  the  birth  of  Merlin.    HRB,  VI,  xvm. 

83  Loth,  RO  XVI  (1895),  85. 

84  HRB  IX,  ix;  VIII,  xxi.    See  also  San  Marte,  p.  367,  n.  11. 
86  See  Loth,  RO  XVI,  84  ff. 


106  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


are  told  that  Gawain  is  Lot 's  son.  As  king  of  Norway,  Lot  is  among 
the  coronation  guests,  and  later  commands  troops  in  the  war  with 
Rome  (X,  vi.)  Wace's  additions  are  of  no  importance.  He  men- 
tions Lot  twice  among  the  coronation  guests;  in  the  passage  where 
Geoffrey  lists  the  name:  as  Loth  de  Loenois  (10523),  and  later  as 
Lot  qui  est  rois  des  Norois  (10578)  as  though  they  were  different 
persons.86 

Apparently  Lot  does  not  figure  in  the  Mabinogion.  There  and 
in  the  Triads  Gwyar  is  the  father  of  Gawain  87  (Gwalchmei).  Ac- 
cording to  the  evidence  therefore,  Lot 's  connection  with  Arthur  and 
his  relationship  to  Gawain  seem  to  date  from  Geoffrey  of  Mon- 
mouth,88 hence  it  is  probably  through  Wace  that  Crestien  was  led 
to  assign  to  Lot  the  two  chief  roles  of  the  historical  figure :  a  knight 
of  the  Round  Table  and  the  father  of  Gawain. 

Merlin.  It  is  curious  that  Merlin,  who  from  the  time  of  Geoff- 
rey 89  on  is  so  prominently  associated  with  all  matters  Arthurian 
should  receive  from  Crestien  but  one  brief  and  indirect  mention. 
In  describing  Arthur's  generosity  on  the  occasion  of  Erec's  coro- 
nation Crestien  says: 

6690     Anmi  la  cort  sor  un  tapit 

Ot  trante  muis  d'esterlins  blans; 

Car  lors  avoient  a  eel  tans 

Coreii  90  des  le  tans  Merlin 

Par  tote  Bretaingne  esterlin. 
These  lines  imply  that  the  silver  has  been  accumulating  for  a  very 
long  time,  hence  its  quantity;  and  therefore,  that  le  tans  Merlin 
must  mean  "in  the  far  past."  The  origin  of  so  vague  an  allusion 
to  such  a  renowned  person  as  Merlin  is  obviously  impossible  to 
trace. 

86  Confusion  may  be  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  form  Leir  found  in  at  least  one  MS 
of  the  HBB  (see  San  Marte  367  n.  11)  occurs  in  the  Brut  MS  du  Roi  7515  3-8- 
Colbert  in  this  line :  Leith  qui  est  rois  des  Northois.  Wace  may  have  followed  a  MS  with 
the  Leir  form  here  and  not  have  realized  that  Leir  and  Lot  were  intended  for  the 
same  person. 

87  Why  Loth,  Mab.  I,  227,  n.  2,  should  say  that  in  the  Mabinogion,  Gwalchmei  is 
presented  as  the  son  of  Loch  Llawwynnyawc,  when  he  is  nine  times  spoken  of  as  the 
son  of  Gwyar  (I,  222,  227,  311;  II,  47,  96,  100,  137,  265,  268)  and  nowhere  men- 
tioned as  the  son  of  anyone  else,  I  do  not  understand.  The  name  of  Loch  Llarowynnawc 
occurs  but  once  in  the  Mabinogion  (Ref.  to  I,  295  in  gloss,  seems  to  be  incorrect). 

88  Loth,  BC  XVI,  84  also  implies  such  a  conclusion. 

89  In  Celtic  legend  Merlin  was  associated  with  Arthur  certainly  before  Geoffrey's  time. 
See  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  91. 

90  On  the  form  of  this  word,  see  "Large  E"  333,  n. 


CHARACTERS 


107 


Angres  -  Modred.  The  relationship  of  Angres  to  Modred  has 
been  discussed  in  connection  with  the  episodes  in  the  first  part  of 
Cliges.  It  is  necessary  to  add  here  only  that  the  parallel  does  not 
extend  to  their  connection  with  Arthur.  Modred  is  Arthur's 
nephew,  the  son  of  his  sister  Anne  and  Lot  of  Londonesia  (HRB 
IX,  ix).  Geoffrey  states  this  fact  in  connection  with  Arthur's  ap- 
portioning of  territory  to  the  three  brothers  Aguisel,  Urien,  and 
Lot.  Wace  does  not  speak  of  Modred  until  Arthur  is  about  to 
embark  for  Gaul  when  he  entrusted  his  kingdom  A  Mordret  un 
de  ses  nevuz  (11451).  Later  on  he  mentions  the  relationship  more 
specifically:  Ses  nies,  fils  sa  sorur  esteit  (13423).  Angres  is 
merely  a  vassal  and  is  not  related  to  Arthur  by  blood. 

Nut 

See  pp.  102  ff. 
Pandragon 

See  Uther  Pendragon,  pp.  108  ff. 
Bion 

See  pp.  67  ff. 

Urien.  Crestien 's  only  mention  of  Urien  is  in  relation  to  Yvain. 
Yvain  li  fiz  Urien.91  Once  he  gives  a  hint  of  Urien 's  station  (Y 
2123)  where  he  says  that  Yvain  as  the  son  of  Urien  is  of  high  line- 
age. This  idea  finds  an  echo  in  the  Brut  where  Arthur  is  apportion- 
ing his  northern  conquests  among  the  brothers  Lot,  Aguisel  and 
Urien,  (B  9854).  Wace  says  they  are  of  mult  franc  linage  and  of 
halt  parage  and  bien  emparente.  The  MS  du  Boi  73  Cange  reads : 
Trois  freres  de  mult  grant  paraige  I  avoit  de  real  linaige.  Their 
ancestors  had  held  the  lands  beyond  the  Humber  by  right  and 
had  done  wrong  to  none.  Geoffrey  does  not  emphasize  their  high 
lineage:  he  states  merely  that  they  were  regali  prosopia  orti  (IX, 
ix).  Bofh  chroniclers  put  Urien,  King  of  Murefensium  (Moray), 
among  the  coronation  guests;  (IX,  xii;  10521)  and  speak  of  him 
as  father  of  Eventus  (Yvain)  to  whom  fell  the  kingdom  of  Agui- 
sel after  the  latter 's  death  (XI,  i;  13597).  In  the  council  held 
before  the  British  invasion  of  Roman  territory  Aguisel  speaks 
and  is  introduced  as  the  brother  of  Lot  and  Urien.92  Urien  (Uryen 
ab  Kynvarch)  is  a  distinguished  figure  in  Welsh  legend.  As  in  the 
chronicles  and  romances  he  is  the  father  of  Owein 93  ■  (Yvain). 

1706,  Y  1018,  1818,  2122,  3631,  P  8113. 
B2  B  11236.    Geoffrey  does  not  mention  this  item. 
83  Mob.  II,  i. 


108  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

He  is  a  favorite  hero  with  Talesin,94  and  he  is  king  of  Reged,  a  dis- 
trict often  placed  in  the  north.  Urbgen  (Urien)  is  mentioned  in  a 
genealogical  passage  in  Nennius.95  According  to  the  Iola  MSS  127 
Uryen  came  from  South  Wales,  helped  to  expel  the  Gaels  and  final- 
ly was  canonized.  Uryen  was  the  son  of  Kynvarch,  a  name  borne 
by  the  great  tribes  of  Northern  Britons.  The  name  Urbgen  (Urien) 
is  found  also  among  the  Armorican  Britons,  and  Llywarch  Heu 
often  celebrates  Uryen  and  Owein.    (Mob.  II,  i,  n.  1). 

Urien 's  name  appears  three  times  in  the  Triads.  His  slayer 
is  Llofvan  (Llovan)  Llaw  Divro;  (Mab.  II,  234  &  n.  1);  he  is 
one  of  the  three  pillars  of  combat  in  the  Isle  of  Prydein  (II,  235) 
and  one  of  the  three  blessed  progeny  (II,  260).  These  facts  all 
go  to  prove  that  Urien  was  a  widely  known  person  in  Welsh  tradi- 
tion; hence  that  Wace's  insistence  on  his  high  descent  is  well 
founded  and  may  account  for  Crestien's  use  of  this  detail  in  Yvain. 

Utherpendragon.  Crestien  mentions  the  name  of  Uther  Pen- 
dragon  but  three  times.  In  Yvain  (663)  Arthur  swears  fame 
Uterpandragon  son  pere  that  he  will  go  to  see  the  fountain.  In 
Perceval,  Uther  is  twice  alluded  to  as  the  father  of  Arthur  (426, 
8704). 

In  the  HBB,  Uther  plays  an  important  role,  second  only  to 
that  of  Arthur  himself.  To  give  his  history  briefly:  Constantine 
king  of  Britain  had  three  sons :  Constans,  Aurelius  Ambrosius,  and 
Uther  Pendragon  (VI,  v).  Constans  becomes  the  tool  of  Vorti- 
gern  (VI,  vi)  who  sets  him  upon  the  throne  until  he  himself  is 
ready  to  occupy  it,  when  he  has  the  weakling  king  assassinated.  At 
this,  those  in  charge  of  the  two  younger  brothers  flee  with  them 
to  Armorica.  (VI,  viii)  Towards  the  end  of  Vortigern's  bloody  reign 
Merlin  prophesies  the  coming  of  Aurelius  Ambrosius  and  his  brother 
who  are  to  seize  the  throne  (VIII,  i).  Merlin's  words  come  to  pass 
the  very  next  day.  The  sons  of  Constantine  arrive  with  a  large 
army,  burn  Vortigern  in  a  tower,  and  take  possession  of  the  realm 
(VIII,  ii).  Aurelius  as  the  elder  now  rules  Britain.  During  his 
reign  Uther  is  detailed  with  Merlin  to  bring  over  the  Giant's 

aiMab.  II,  i,  n.  1. 

85  Giles,  op.  ext.,  414.  "Against  him,  Theodoric  of  the  Deiri,  fought  four  kings : 
Urien,  and  Ryderthen,  and  Guallauc,  and  Morcant.  Theodoric  fought  bravely  together 
■with  his  sons  against  that  Urien." 


CHARACTERS 


109 


Dance  from  Ireland  and  set  it  up  in  Salisbury  plain  (VIII,  x). 
Uther  wins  great  distinction  in  Ireland  while  battling  for  these 
magic  stones  (VIII,  xii).  At  the  death  of  Aurelius  a  star  of  won- 
derful magnitude  appears,  announcing  his  decease  and  presaging 
the  reigns  of  Uther  and  his  marvelous  son.  Uther,  then  warring  in 
Cambria,  defeats  the  enemy  and  returns  to  "Winchester  to  take  the 
throne  (VIII,  xvi).  To  commemorate  the  portent  he  has  two 
dragons  made  in  the  likeness  of  the  fiery  dragon  he  had  seen  at 
the  ray  of  the  star.  One  of  these  he  presented  to  the  cathedral  of 
Winchester  and  the  other  he  kept  to  carry  with  him  in  his  wars. 
From  this  time  on  he  was  called,  says  Geoffrey,  "Utherpendragon : 
quod  Britannica  lingua  caput  draconis  appellamus.  "96  Uther  contin- 
ues to  fight  the  Saxons  (VIII,  xviii).  He  becomes  enamoured  of 
Ygerne  wife  of  Gorlois,  duke  of  Cornwall  to  whom  he  gains  access 
with  Merlin's  help,  (VIII,  xix)  and  whom  he  marries  on  the 
death  of  Gorlois  (VIII,  xx).  Their  children  are  Arthur  and  Anne. 
(See  p.  105).  The  rest  of  Uther's  life  is  spent  in  warring  with 
his  old  foes,  the  Saxons  by  whom  he  is  at  last  treacherously  pois- 
oned (VIII,  xxiv).  He  is  at  once  succeeded  by  his  son  Arthur 
(IX,  i).  Uther  appears  throughout  to  have  been  an  able  king. 
Wace's  additions  are,  as  usual,  chiefly  stylistic.  He  details 
Uther's  career  at  considerable  length  and  vivifies  especially  the 
episode  with  Ygerne.  Uther's  love  plaints  might  have  been  ut- 
tered by  Alexander  for  Soradamors  (8885  ff.). 

References  to  Uther  in  the  Triads  show  plainly  the  influence  of 
Geoffrey,97  yet  it  is  strange  that  he  is  nowhere  mentioned  as  the 
father  of  Arthur.  Hence  it  has  been  concluded  that  the  relation- 
ship is  an  invention  of  Geoffrey 's.98 

98  VIII,  xvii.  Pendragon  really  means  "Head  Leader"  and  has  nothing  to  do  with 
dragon,  says  Fletcher,  op.  ext.,  89. 

97  Uther's  flight  into  Llydaw  (Armorica),  his  return,  and  the  burning  of  Vortigern 
in  the  tower  (II,  211).  This  passage  has, either  been  influenced  by  Geoffrey  or  else 
both  it  and  the  Historia  episode  go  back  to  the  same  source.  Uther  is  also  noted  among 
the  three  first  magies  of  the  Isle  of  Prydein  (II,  224). 

98  P.  Paris,  Les  Romans  de  la  Table  Ronde,  Paris,  1868,  I,  48;  Loth,  Mab.  I,  187, 
note.  Fletcher,  op.  ext.,  89,  says  that  some  MSS  of  Nennius  state  that  Arthur  was  called 
Slab  Uther  because  he  was  cruel  from  his  boyhood.  Mab  Uther  means  "terrible  war- 
rior" but  may  also  mean,  "son  of  Uther."  Geoffrey  may  have  used  the  interpolated  text 
and  either  on  purpose  or  erroneously  have  equated  Uter  with  Uthr  Ben.  This  procedure 
would  have  been  just  what  was  needed  to  furnish  Arthur  with  a  father  and  fill  up  the 
gap  which  Nennius's  narrative  implies  between  Arthur  and  the  Aurelius  Ambrosius  of 
Gildas.  As  Ben  and  Pen  are  linguistically  identical,  the  expansion  of  the  name  into 
Uther  Pendragon  is  easily  understood.    U.  P.  =  Head  Leader. 


110  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


It  is  probable  that  Crestien  is  indebted  to  "Wace  for  Arthur's 
parentage. 

Pandragon.  There  is  a  reference  to  Uther  in  Erec  that  deserves 
special  mention.   Arthur  says: 

1811     L 'usage  Pandragon,  mon  pere 
Qui  fu  droiz  rois  et  anperere 
Doi  je  garder  et  maintenir. 
It  is  noticeable  that  Pandragon  occurs  here  alone.    Nowhere  else 
does  Crestien  employ  this  appellative  without  Uther.   And  only  in 
one  place  in  the  Brut  does  it  occur,  not  exactly  without  Uther,  but 
separated  from  the  given  name: 

7767  Uter  ses  frere  Pandragon. 
It  is  possible  that  Crestien  made  use  of  this  detail.  The  passage  is 
also  noteworthy  in  sentiment.  Arthur  wishes  to  keep  the  laws  of 
his  father  who  was  king  and  emperor  by  right.  This  recalls  the 
career  of  the  chronicle  Uther  who  lawfully  assumed  the  crown  af- 
ter his  two  elder  brothers,  and  who  seems  never  to  have  been  un- 
worthy of  it.  Hence  Arthur  would  naturally  desire  to  preserve 
the  statutes  made  by  such  a  father.  This  certainly  looks  like  a  his- 
torical allusion. 

,  Gaivain.  Apparently  the  first"  mention  of  Gawain  is  in  the 
Gesta  Regum  Anglorum  of  William  of  Malmesbury.  ' '  In  the  Prov- 
ince of  Wales  called  Ros,  he  says,  (some  time  not  far  from  the 
year  1090,  we  must  infer)  was  discovered  the  tomb  of  Walwen, 
who,  being  the  son  of  Arthur's  sister,  was  not  unworthy  of  him. 
He  ruled  in  that  part  of  Britain  which  is  still  called  Walweitha,100 
a  very  valiant  knight,  but  he  was  driven  from  his  kingdom  by  the 
brother  and  nephew  of  Hengist;  first  getting  satisfaction,  how- 
ever, by  inflicting  great  harm  upon  them.  He  shared  deservedly 
in  the  glory  of  his  uncle,  because  they  deferred  for  many  years  the 
ruin  of  their  falling  country. ' ' 101a 

As  Fletcher  says,  we  may  infer  from  this  passage  that  legends 
about  Gawain  were  already  known  in  which  he  was  distinguished 
as  Arthur's  nephew.101"  Geoffrey,  building  upon  this  tale  and 

"Paris,  HL  XXX,  29;  Weston  J.  L.,  The  Legend  of  Sir  Gawain,  London,  1897,  8. 
100  Galloway,  acc.  to  Paris,  loc.  cit.    See  also  Weston,  Perceval  I,  192. 
101a  Quoted  from  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  104. 

101b  See  the  ballad  of  King  Arthur  and  King  Cornwall  where  Arthur  says  to  Gawain: 
"My  sisters  sonne  be  yee."  Sargent  and  Kittridge,  Eng.  <&  Scot.  Pop.  Ballads,  Boston, 
1904,  50.    See  also  Nitze,  MP  IX  (1912)  26. 


CHARACTERS 


111 


doubtless  other  stories,  elaborates  the  portrait  of  Gawain  just  as  he 
has  done  that  of  Arthur,  though  in  both  the  Historia  and  the  Brut, 
Arthur  is  always  first. 

The  HBB  makes  Gawain  the  son  of  Lot  and  Anne,  and  the 
brother  of  Modred  (IX,  ix).  At  the  age  of  twelve  he  was  sent  to 
Pope  Sulpicius  to  be  trained  in  arms  (IX,  xi).  On  the  eve  of  the 
war  with  Rome  Arthur  sends  him  as  an  envoy  (see  pp.  41  ff.)  to 
the  Roman  camp  where  through  his  reckless  behavior  he  brings  on 
a  battle  in  which  he  performs  many  valorous  deeds  (X,  iv  ff.).  One 
of  these  exploits  is  a  combat  with  the  emperor,  Lucius,  who  re- 
ceives the  youth  with  joy  as  one  whose  fame  had  long  been  known 
to  him  (X,  xi).  Gawain  meets  his  death  in  the  last  great  conflict 
of  Arthurian  history,  the  war  with  Modred  in  which  Arthur  him- 
self disappears  from  the  stage  (XI,  i.) 

In  the  Historia,  Hoel,  Duke  of  Brittany,  also  represented  as 
Arthur 's  nephew,  is  a  peer  of  Gawain 's.  Together  they  command 
a  company  of  foot  in  the  Roman  war  and  help  to  change  the  tide 
of  battle.  Geoffrey  says  of  them  (X,  x) :  Hoelus  ergo  et  Wal- 
gainus  quibus  meliores  praeterita  secula  non  genuerunt.  Gawain 
is  here  a  high  spirited  youth,  slaying  easily,  coolly,  tauntingly,  and 
winning  the  commendation  of  Arthur  for  his  successes. 

Wace  makes  several  important  additions  to  Geoffrey's  portrait. 
First,  Gawain 's  greatness  is  predicted  at  the  time  of  Arthur's 
birth,  that  is,  before  he  himself  is  born  (9057)  and  his  parentage  is 
also  recorded  here.  Geoffrey  does  not  mention  these  items.  On 
his  return  from  Pope  Sulpicius  he  is  thus  described  : 
10106    Pruz  fu  e  de  mult  grant  mesure, 

D'orgoil  e  de  forfait  n'ot  cure; 

Plus  vuelt  faire  qu'il  ne  dist 

E  plus  duner  qu'il  ne  pramist. 
When  Arthur  calls  a  council  to  deliberate  upon  the  demands  of 
the  Roman  Emperor,  Gawain  is  among  the  speakers  and  addresses 
the  assembly  in  words  full  of  the  spirit  of  chivalry  and  youthful 
enterprise.  (See  pp.  9,  146).  His  part  in  the  war  is  treated 
with  greater  emphasis  than  in  the  HBB.  In  the  thick  of  the 
fight  he  speaks  with  stingingly  courteous  irony : 
12237    E  Walwein  dist,  par  curteisie : 

Marcel,  en  enfer  oii  tu  vas, 

A  Quintilien  nunceras, 


112 


THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Par  tei  li  mant  e  tu  li  di 

Que  Bretun  sunt  assez  hardi. 
Hoel  is  still  his  peer,  but  to  Geoffrey's  praise  Wace  adds: 
13168    Tel  dui  vassal  ne  furent  ainz 

Unques  el  siecle  trespasse 

N'orent  ensamble  tel  este 

De  bunte  et  de  curteisie 

De  sen  et  de  chevalerie. 
In  battle  they  rage  like  lions  (13168)  and  Gawain  is  of  mult  grant 
air  (13225.)  At  his  death  Arthur  grieves  102  mightily,  for  there 
was  no  man  he  loved  so  well  (13506,  13551).  Thus  in  the  Brut 
Gawain  has  become  a  figure  distinguished  for  valor,  courtesy,  sense, 
moderation,  for  always  keeping  his  promises,  and  for  inspiring  the 
love  and  confidence  of  his  king.  In  personality  he  is  essentially 
chivalric, — a  character  ready  for  the  hand  of  the  romancer. 

Let  us  see  how  Crestien  has  apparently  availed  himself  of  this 
material.  Crestien  in  his  treatment  of  Gawain  indulges  in  a  spe- 
cies of  hero  worship.  Gawain  appears  in  every  romance  and  is 
conspicuous  in  three ; 103  in  fact  in  the  Conte  du  Oraal  his  achieve- 
ments occupy  practically  half  the  narrative.1048 

Often  he  is  entitled  mes  sire;  and  again  and  again  does  Cres- 
tien attribute  to  him  the  virtues  present  in  the  Gawain  of  the  Brut. 
1.  As  Arthur's  sister's  son,  he  is  always  on  the  king's  right  hand  104b 
(E  2286,  C  2350,  5084;  Y  2380,  2717 ;  P  4048).  2.  He  is  always  a 
figure  of  distinction  both  as  a  soldier  and  a  man  of  gentle  birth  and 
is  frequently  a  peer  of  the  technical  hero  (E  1691,  9062,  2129 ;  C 
4923,  4917,  4951;  Y  2395,  2401,  4790,  5851,  6447;  P  4650,  4448, 
5490).  3.  He  has  a  sense  of  ironical  humor  (Y  2431,  2533).  4. 
Everywhere  his  words  and  actions  are  marked  by  sense,  especially 
by  tact  and  justice  (E  39,  299,  308,  4112;  C  5168;  L  226,  392;  Y 
2395,  2411,  2484)  Mesure  (P  4741,  5149,  8082)  Cortoisie  (#.4093; 
Y  2411;  P  4311,  4393,  5337,  5454,  5786,  7931,  8096).  5.  His  beha- 
vior is  distinguished  by  reasonable  pride  and  self  confidence,  and  by 
the  dignity  of  character  belonging  to  the  nobly  born  and  bred, — the 
mult  grant  air  of  Wace's  Gawain  (E  4104;  L  6505;  Y  3698,  4083; 

102  See  pp.  37;  81;  110,  and  n.  101  b. 

103  Lancelot,  Tvain,  Perceval.    See  also  p.  46. 

104a  Tne  Conte  =  9199  lines.    To  Perceval  are  given  4814;  to  Gawain,  4385. 
104b  Nitze,  MP  IX,  26,  n.  4,  remarks  upon  Arthur's  reliance  upon  Gawain. 


CHARACTERS 


113 


P  5258,  4365,  4717).  To  these  virtues  Crestien  adds  frankness  (E 
4094)  ;  Gawain  never  hides  his  name  from  those  who  ask  it,105  (Y 
6264;  P  5583,  8795)  ;  generosity,  and  a  knowledge  of  healing  herbs 
(P  6874) .  Except  for  the  latter  trait  there  is  nothing  here  that  does 
not  find  a  parallel  in  the  character  of  Wace's  Gawain.  If,  as  Miss 
Weston  says,106  Crestien 's  poems  represent  the  earliest  and  most 
primitive  form  of  the  Gawain  stories,  then  the  possibility  of  diverse 
sources  for  the  character  of  Gawain  is  lessened,  and  the  chances 
that  in  personality  Crestien 's  Gawain  has  been  here  influenced  by 
the  chronicle  are  more  than  likely. 

When  these  various  details  are  put  together  it  is  evident  that 
Wace  probably  had  considerable  influence  on  Crestien 's  portrayal 
of  such  of  his  characters  as  are  found  in  the  Brut.  This  conclu- 
sion seems  the  more  apparent  when  we  differentiate  the  men  from 
their  actions.  If  we  try  to  parallel  their  exploits  we  discover  that 
the  borrowings  are  few ; 107  but  if  personality  is  considered,  there 
is  scarcely  a  character  whose  traits  do  not  appear  to  a  greater  or 
less  extent  in  the  Brut.  It  is  possible  that  Crestien  borrowed  from 
Wace  the  Arthur  of  Cliges,  the  nobler  Kay,  practically  all  of 
Gawain 's  character,  Baudemagus,  Aguisel,  Lot,  Bedver,  Ygerne, 
Utherpendragon ;  some  details  for  Yvain  son  of  Urien,  Yder  son  of 
Nut,  Guinevere  of  the  Charrete,  and  the  name  Cadovalanz.  The 
only  figure  in  the  table  that  cannot  be  traced  to  Wace  is  Merlin, 
since  with  Crestien  he  is  nothing  but  a  name. 

105  This  is  a  trait  of  Erec's  also  (E  1059,  4153,  6034).  Possibly  since  Crestien  used 
it  for  Erec  first,  he  later  borrowed  it  for  Gawain. 

106  Gawain,  8. 

107  Exceptions  are  Angres,  Rion,  and  the  Arthur  of  Cligis. 


Chapter  IV 
Geography 
Bretaigne  and  Breton 

One  of  the  cruxes  in  the  geography  of  Arthurian  romance  is 
in  the  terms  Bretaigne  and  Breton.  When  Crestien,  for  instance, 
uses  Bretaigne  does  he  mean  Great  Britain  (or  England),  Wales, 
or  Brittany  ?  When  he  employs  the  term  Breton  does  he  mean  the 
inhabitants  of  England,  of  Wales,  or  of  Brittany?  This  problem 
has  received  detailed  investigation  by  Brugger  (ZfS  XX,  79  ff. ; 

XXVII,  69  ff.)  and  Lot  (Rom.  XXIV,  497  ff.;  XXV,  1  ff.,  and 

XXVIII,  1  ff.)  with  the  result  thus  formulated  by  Brugger  (op. 
cit.,  83  ff.)-  Mediaeval  writers  use  the  term  Bretaigne  in  three  dif- 
ferent senses : 

I.  Bretaigne  means  the  island  inclusive  or  exclusive  of  Scot- 
land before  and  during  the  Germanic  conquest;  also  the  realm  of 
King  Arthur. 

II.  Bretaigne  means  Armorica,  the  present  Brittany  on  the 
continent,  after  the  British  migration  of  the  fifth  century. 

III.  Bretaigne  means  the  island  inclusive  or  exclusive  of  Scot- 
land, but  especially  England  after  the  Germanic  conquest. 

Breton  signifies  the  inhabitants  of  Bretaigne  I,  exclusive  of  Scot- 
land, naturally,  and  of  Bretaigne  II.  It  does  not  seem  to  desig- 
nate the  inhabitants  of  Bretaigne  III.1"  In  addition  to  these  two 
meanings  Breton  denotes  the  remnant  of  Britons  occupying  the 
districts  of  Wales,  Cornwall  and  Strathclyde,  especially  Wales, 
after  the  Germanic  conquest ;  but  the  districts  themselves  inhabited 
under  these  circumstances  were  never  designated  as  Bretaigne. 
Bretaigne  III  is  simply  England,  or  England  and  Scotland  toge- 
ther. Therefore  Breton  may  mean  the  Welsh,  but  Bretaigne  does 
not  mean  Wales.  Bretaigne  III,  and  Breton  denoting  the  remnant 
of  the  British  race  in  England  after  the  Germanic  conquest  are 
distinctly  learned  terms  employed  chiefly  by  Latin  writers.lb  Bre- 
ton meaning  the  inhabitants  of  Armorica  and  Breton  meaning  the 
British  remnant  are  of  rare  occurrence.2 

18  See  ZfS  XX,  84. 

lb  This  is,  according  to  Brugger's  investigation.  He  has  not  included  the  Rou  in 
his  studies.    There,  Breton  invariably  refers  to  the  inhabitants  of  Armorica.    See  p.  116 

2  Lot  agrees  with  Brugger  (Bom.  XXVIII,  2  ff. )  on  the  explanation  of  Bretaigne, 
but  partially  differs  with  him  on  that  of  Breton  (op.  cit.,  5  ff.) 


GEOGRAPHY 


115 


The  obvious  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  this  discussion  is 
that  when  a  single  term  is  employed  in  such  a  diversity  of  mean- 
ings there  is  bound  to  be  confusion.  Most  writers  both  in  Latin 
and  in  the  vernacular  doubtless  used  the  terms  Bretaigne,  Breton 
indifferently  to  denote  insular  or  continental  relations.  They  did 
not  care  to  make  a  distinction,  for  the  people  of  whom  they  were 
speaking  belonged  to  one  and  the  same  race.  The  confusion,  once 
begun  in  the  chronicle  histories  or  in  current  speech,  crept  into 
the  romances  with  the  result  that  it  is  impossible  at  times  to  tell 
with  certainty  whether  the  author  means  insular  Britain  and  its 
people,  or  the  land  and  people  of  continental  Britain. 

Geoffrey  of  Monmouth,3  however,  seems  to  have  observed  a 
careful  distinction  between  Britannia-Bret  ones  I  and  Britannia- 
Bretones  II. 

Britannia  II  EBB      V,  xii    (a)  regnum  Armoricum,  quod  nunc 

Britannia  dicitur. 
(b)  altera  Britannia. 
V,  xiv  per  universas  Armorica  regni  fe- 

citque  alteram  Britannican. 
V,  xvi  ad  Armoricam  quae  jam  altera 

Britannia  vocabatur. 
VI,  iv  in  minorem  Brittanniam  quae 

tune  Armorica  sive  Letania 
dicebatur. 
VII,  iii         in  Armorica  regno. 


Britones  II  V, 

XV 

Armoricosque  Britones. 

IX, 

ii 

Hoelus  ex  Dubricio  rege  Armorican- 

orum  Britonum. 

IX, 

xii 

Hoelus  dux  Armoricanorum  Britonum. 

IX, 

XV 

Hoelo  rege 

IX, 

xvi 

Hoelus  rex  ' 

x, 

V 

"  dux 

x, 

ix 

Donee  venerunt  ad  aciem  Armoricanorum. 

Britonum  quam  Hoelus  et  "Walgainus  reg- 

nabant. 

x, 

xi 

Impetum  in  Armoricanos  faciunt. 

XI, 

i 

Dimisso  Hoelo  duce  Armoricanorum  Britones. 

x, 

vi 

Hoelus  dux  Armoricanorum. 

*  The  discussions  of  Lot  and  Brugger  deal  almost  entirely  with  the  Lais. 


116  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Thus  Geoffrey  never  fails  to  modify  the  terms  Britannia  and  Bre- 
tones  when  he  means  the  land  and  people  of  Brittany. 

Wace,  in  his  Brut,  has  not  only  made  numerous  insertions  re- 
specting Armorica  and  its  people,  but  he  has  failed  to  follow 
Geoffrey's  distinction.  He  designates  Brittany  by  three  different 
terms 

I.    Armoriche,  796,  6031,  6081,  6473,  6476,  7745,  7916,  14462. 

II.  Bretaigne  le  menur,  6071,  6837,  9377,  13173,  14463,  4288. 
So  far,  he  follows  Geoffrey,  but  the  name  he  most  frequently  uses  to 
describe  the  continental  district  is  the  one  he  generally  employs  for 
Great  Britain  or  England :  simply, 

III.  Bretaigne,  794,  795,  2082,  3927,  6073,  6082,  6137,  6475, 

14619,  14630,  15133. 
It  is  always  possible  to  tell,  however,  whether  Wace  means  insular 
or  Continental  Britain.  His  use  of  Breton  for  the  people  of  Brit- 
tany is  rare.  The  word  in  this  sense  occurs  but  four  times  in  the 
whole  Brut:  9995,  13199,  13682,  14468.  Lines  9995  4  and  13682  4 
mentioning  respectively  the  Round  Table  as  fabled  about  by  the 
Britons,  and  Arthur's  return  which  Wace  says  they  expect,  must 
refer  to  the  Armorican  Britons.  Line  13199  certainly  alludes  to 
the  Armoricans,  for  it  is  part  of  a  passage  describing  the  valor  of 
Cil  de  Bretaigne  la  menur  who  were  led  to  battle  by  their  Duke 
Hoel  (13173  ff).  Line  14468  alludes  to  the  fact  that  the  Britons 
of  Armorica  are  descended  from  insular  Britons.  Thus  in  these 
four  instances  of  the  use  of  Breton  for  the  Armoricans,  Wace, 
though  not  distinguishing  the  terms,  seems  to  be  clear. 

Wace's  practice  in  the  Rou  is  in  accord  with  the  principles 
formulated  by  Brugger.    The  new  name  for  England,  Engleterre, 
rules  throughout  except  in  two  cases  where  the  author  says  he 
is  giving  the  archaic  names : 
I.  p.  13,  v.  81  Engleterre  Bretaine  out  nun. 
II.  p.  29,  v.  15  Engleterre  Bretainne  out  nun. 
Everywhere  else  Bretaigne  means  Brittany.  Armorica  is  an  archa- 
ism also  and  occurs  but  twice:  I,  p.  14,  v.  85;  II,  p.  30,  v.  25. 
Breton  refers  invariably  to  the  people  of  Brittany.    After  the 
Germanic  people  became  the  chief  race  of  the  island,5  the  inhabi- 

4  Lot  (Bom.  XXIV,  507,  n.  4)  seems  to  think  that  these  are  the  only  lines  referring 
to  the  Armorican  Britons. 

5  See  ZfS  XX,  84. 


GEOGRAPHY 


117 


tants  were  generally  called  "English"  even  while,  among  the 
learned,  the  old  term  Bretaigne  was  still  employed.  In  the  Ron, 
Wace  is  writing  of  a  time  when  the  new  names  had  become  firmly 
established.  Bretaigne,  meaning  England  and  Armorica  are  ar- 
chaisms and  of  rare  occurrence ;  hence  there  was  no  cause  for  confu- 
sion. The  Bou  then  may  be  excluded  from  this  discussion,  since  it 
cannot  have  affected  the  romancers  in  their  confusion  of  names. 

By  comparing  the  Historia  and  the  Brut  in  their  use  of  Brit- 
tannia,  Bretones;  Bretaigne,  Breton  we  can  see  how  the  distinc- 
tion came  gradually  to  break  down.  Geoffrey  uses  different  names 
to  designate  the  different  places  and  peoples.  Wace  employs  one 
name  to  designate  the  two  places  and  peoples  but  is  still  clear  in 
the  use  of  it.  This  confusion  finds  illustration  in  the  works  of 
Crestien. 

Bretaigne  occurs  but  twice  in  Erec.  The  first  instance,  Nantes 
en  Bretaingne,  (6553)  will  be  treated  later  (pp.  121  ff.)  The  sec- 
ond case  is  perfectly  clear  (6696)  :  Crestien  is  speaking  of  a 
quantity  of  silver  that  had  been  accumulating  since  the  time  of 
Merlin  par  tote  Bretaingne.  This  is  treasure  belonging  to  Arthur 
which  he  dispenses  at  the  coronation.  Hence  Bretaigne  must  mean 
England  or  Great  Britain,  not  Brittany.6 

Bretaigne  is  found  more  frequently  in  Cliges  than  anywhere 
else.  The  meaning  of  the  term  in  lines  16,  77,  114,  2397,  2410, 
4219,  4224,  4255,  4310,  4317,  4325,  4477,  5167,  5181,  5206,  5208, 
5296,  is  obviously  "Great  Britain."  In  lines  423,  438,  1051,  1059, 
1089,  1102,  6703  the  meaning  is  just  as  clearly  "Brittany."  But 
line  5066  is  doubtful.   Crestien  says : 

Cliges  avuec  le  roi  demore 

Jusqu'au  novelement  d'este, 

S'a  par  tote  Bretaingne  este 

Et  par  France  et  par  Normandie. 
The  connecting  of  Bretaigne  with  France  and  Normandy  at  once 
causes  ambiguity.    This  combination  of  names  occurs  again  in  a 

9  It  is  difficult  to  tell  from  Crestien's  use  of  Bretaigne,  meaning  the  island,  whether 
he  means  "Great  Britain"  or  simply  "England."  Occasionally  he  writes  Engleterre ;  this 
leaves  us  in  no  doubt.  Of  course,  his  idea  of  Bretaigne  the  island  is  the  territory  ruled 
over  immediately  by  and  subject  to  Arthur.  On  this  basis  Scotland  would  be  included 
and  Bretaigne  would  indicate  "Great  Britain."  I  have  thus  regarded  it  in  this  dig- 
cussion  except  where  the  difference  is  indicated. 


118  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

place  where  the  meaning  is  perfectly  clear.  Arthur  in  preparing 
an  armament  to  go  against  Constantinople  is  assisted  by 

6702     Tote  Angleterre,  totes  Flandres, 

Normandie,  France  et  Bretaingne. 

The  presence  of  Angleterre  in  this  group  leaves  no  doubt  as  to 
the  signification  of  Bretaingne;  it  is  of  course  "Brittany."  But 
because  Bretaingne  means  Brittany  in  this  group,  does  this  neces- 
sitate its  denoting  Brittany  in  the  other?  Since  Cliges  was  with 
the  king  who  we  know  was  in  England  at  the  time,  we  would  nat- 
urally think  that  Bretaingne  was  Great  Britain;  but  since  he 
was  during  this  period  out  of  the  island  long  enough  to  go  into 
France  and  Normandy,  it  does  not  at  all  follow  that  Bretaigne  is 
Great  Britain;  it  could  just  as  well  be  Brittany.  Moreover,  Cres- 
tien  says :  He  was  with  the  king  till  the  beginning  of  summer  and 
[si]  he  went  par  tote  Bretaingne  etc.  The  si  rather  separates  the 
two  ideas:  his  being  with  the  king  and  his  going  through  Bre- 
taigne, France  and  Normandie,  thus  throwing  Bretaingne  closer 
to  the  second  element  of  the  sentence  than  the  first.  We  have  here 
a  real  puzzle.  Though  the  balance  weighs  a  little  more  heavily  in 
favor  of  Brittany  than  of  Great  Britain,  it  is  not  enough  to  be 
decisive. 

Bretaigne  occurs  but  once  in  the  Charrete  where  it  means 
England : 

3905     Le  roi  Artu  iert  la  bataille, 

Qui  tient  Bretaingne  et  Cornoaille. 
With  this  exception  the  word  to  denote  England  is,  in  Lancelot, 
Logres.7 

In  Yvain  the  only  name  for  Great  Britain  is  Bretaigne  which 
occurs  but  three  times:  1,  2329,  2546.  Bretaigne  is  not  found 
here  in  any  other  sense. 

In  the  Perceval  the  name  for  Great  Britain  is  exclusively 
Logres.  Bretaigne  meaning  Armorica  does  not  occur. 

Crestien  seems  to  use  Breton  both  in  its  broadest  sense  (not 
heretofore  noted)  referring  to  Brythonic  Celts  in  general,  and 
with  a  more  restricted  meaning  to  denote  either  insular  or  con- 
tinental Britons.  The  connotation  of  Breton  in  E  652  Erec  m'ape- 

7  According  to  Loth,  Mab.  100,  n.  1,  Logres  is  used  in  the  romances  in  the  restricted 
sense:  "Loegr  ou  Loeggr  est  le  nom  que  les  Gallois  donnent  a  1' Angleterre  proprement 
dite  au  sud  de  l'Humber."    See  this  study,  p.  56. 


GEOGRAPHY 


119 


lent  li  Breton,  may  be  Bretons  in  general.8    The  other  occurrence 
of  Breton  in  Erec,  indicates  the  Armoricans : 
6646     Normanz,  Bretons,  Escoz,  Irois; 

D'Angleterre  et  de  Cornoaille. 
Cliges,  vv.  440,  567,  refer  clearly  to  the  Armoricans.  The 
Breton  here  are  the  people  Arthur  goes  to  visit  across  the  sea  in 
Brittany.  Li  Breton  receive  joyfully  the  news  of  his  coming,  and 
welcome  him  just  as  good  vassals  should.  (See  p.  84)  Line  2603, 
however,  is  ambiguous.   Alexander  says  to  his  son,  Cliges : 

 ja  ne  savras 

Conoistre,  conbien  tu  avras 

De  proesce  ne  de  vertu, 

Se  a  la  cort  le  roi  Artu 

Ne  te  vas  esprover  eincois 

Et  as  Bretons  et  as  Francois. 
The  ideas  Bretons  and  Frangois  are  thrown  together,  and  as  one, 
are  separated  from  the  idea  "Arthurian  court,"  just  as  in  the 
case  of  Bretaigne  above.  We  simply  cannot  tell  with  certainty 
whether  Crestien  means  the  people  of  England  or  of  Brittany,  or 
Brythonic  Celts  in  general. 

Breton  does  not  occur  in  any  sense  in  Lancelot  or  in  Perceval. 
It  is  found  once  in  Tvain  where  it  seems  to  mean  Bretons  in  gen- 
eral (37). 9 

Though  Crestien  is  generally  clear  in  his  use  of  these  terms, 
there  are  four  cases,  two  for  Bretaigne  (E  6553,  C  5066)  and  two 
for  Breton  (E  651,  C  2608)  where  he  is  ambiguous. 

The  employment  of  these  names  in  the  double  sense,  if  it  did 
not  reach  Crestien  through  oral  sources  probably  came  to  him 
from  Wace.  This  does  not  mean  that  the  Brut  is  directly  respon- 
sible for  the  ambiguity,  but  it  does  mean,  as  above  stated,  that 
Wace  by  using,  however  clearly,  the  same  word  to  denote  entirely 
different  ideas  made  ambiguity  possible  for  later  writers  who 
were  either  indifferent  to,  or  did  not  wish  to  observe  the  distinc- 
tion.10 

8  Lot,  Rom.  XXVIII,  18  f.,  recognizes  such  a  connotation. 

9  Foerster,  Tvain  (1891)  XV,  takes  this  to  mean  Armoricans. 

10  Thomas's  use  of  Bretaigne  in  the  double  sense  is  probably  owing  to  the  Brut.  He 
is  clear,  however,  except  in  one  instance,  2123,  which  after  all  probably  means  England, 
See  Bedier,  ed.  II,  455,  gloss.  It  is  possible  that  Thomas  as  well  as  Wace  may  have 
influenced  Crestien  in  this  respect.  Breton  is  found  but  once,  3076,  and  means  "people 
of  Brittany." 


120  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

In  this  connection  there  is  another  respect  in  which  Crestien 
recalls  "Wace's  practice.  That  is  the  coupling  of  Bretaigne  or 
Angleterre  with  Cornwall : 

Erec,  6647  D 'Angleterre  et  de  Cornoaille. 
Cliges,  80  An  Bretaingne  n'an  Cornoaille. 
Cliges,  1480    Cil  de  Gales  et  de  Bretaingne. 

Et  d'Escoce,  et  de  Cornoaille. 
Lancelot,  3906    Qui  tient  Bretaingne  et  Cornoaille. 
(See  p.  56). 

The  habit  of  mentioning  these  places  together  probably  started  with 
Wace  and  ultimately  of  course  with  Geoffrey.  Both  chroniclers 
tell  how  Brutus  and  Coreneus  in  the  early  days  divided  the  island 
of  Albion  between  them  and  how  each  named  his  portion  of  the  ter- 
ritory after  himself, — whence  Britain  and  Cornwall.11  This  dis- 
tinction may  be  said  to  contribute  a  new  meaning  for  Bretaigne, 
a  meaning  which  appears  to  have  been  suggested  to  Crestien  by 
Wace,  that  is:  England  exclusive  of  Wales,  Scotland  and  Corn- 
wall. This  seems  to  be  the  most  limited  sense  in  which  the  term 
,  is  employed.    {VUgis  80,  1480). 

Wales  is  always  carefully  differentiated  by  Wace  from  Bre- 
taigne, Engleterre,  Escoce,  and  Cornoailles.  Note  lines  2251,  5189, 
5856,  7491,  8391,  8419,  8493,  12595,  13922,  14380,  15195,  and  see 
especially  HBB  XII,  xix  and  Brut  15255,  15279  ff.  where  these 
authors  state  particularly  that  the  inhabitants  of  Wales  after  they 
were  subdued  by  the  barbarians:  jam  non  vocabantur  Brit- 
ones  sed  Gualenses;  Les  remenailles  des  Bretons  Que  nos  or 
Galois  apelons.  These  passages  exactly  illustrate  Brugger's  Bre- 
ton IV  (ZfS  XX,  85)  Crestien,  also,  is  careful  to  observe  the  dis- 
tinction :  Gales,  E  6649 ;  C  1461,  1480,  2369 ;  P  481,  2715,  4097 ; 
Y  7  Carduel  en  Gales  (see  p.  73  f.).  Galois,  C  1824,  2427, 
4828 ;  E  1526,  1738 ;  P  233,  241,  583,  589,  769,  3537.  Thus  Cres- 
tien, unless  he  got  his  idea  from  current  speech,  was  probably  fol- 
lowing Wace  in  his  use  of  Bretaigne,  Breton  in  the  double  sense; 
in  the  coupling  of  Bretaigne  and  Cornwall;  and  in  the  sharp  dis- 
tinction between  Wales  and  the  Welsh  on  one  hand  and  Great  Brit- 
ain and  its  inhabitants  on  the  other. 

The  following  table  summarizes  Crestien 's  use  of  the  terms 
above  discussed. 


"HUB  I,  xvi;  Brut,  1201  ff. 


GEOGKAPHY 


121 


Bretaigne 

1.  Great  Britain  or  Arthur's  realm. 

The  most  common  meaning,  seen  in  E,  C,  Y. 

2.  England  as  distinct  from  Cornwall,  Wales  and  Scotland. 

C  80,  1480;  L  3906. 

3.  Armorica,  C. 
Breton 

1.  Brythonic  Celts  in  general,  i.  e.  Celts  ruled  over  by  Arthur 

both  in  the  Island  and  in  Armorica  and  not  always 
distinguished  from  each  other.   E  652,  C  2608,  Y  37. 

2.  Armoricans  exclusive  of  other  Celts,  C. 

Gales — Wales  as  distinct  from  the  rest  of  Arthur's  ter- 
ritory. E,  C,  Y,  P. 

Galois — The  Welsh  as  distinct  from  Arthur's  other  sub- 
jects. E,  C,  P. 

Carnant  and  Nantes 

The  interpretation  of  Nantes  en  Bretaingne  (E  6553)  depends 
upon  the  locality  of  Erec's  kingdom,  a  question  which  scholars 
view  differently.  According  to  Foerster 12  and  Zimmer,12  the  cap- 
ital of  Erec's  realm  is  Nantes  on  the  Loire.  According  to  G. 
Paris,  Loth,  and  Lot 13  it  is  in  Great  Britain.  There  is  a  Kelli- 
Carnant  in  Gwent,  South  Wales,  and  a  Ros-Carnant  in  Cornwall. 

In  identifying  Erec's  capital  with  Nantes  on  the  Loire,  Zim- 
mer finds  evidence  in  support  of  his  theory  for  the  Armorican 
origin  of  Arthurian  romance.  Erec's  prototype  is  Eoricus,  king 
of  the  West  Goths  in  466  who  conquered  South  Gaul  between 
the  Rhone  and  the  Loire.  From  d'estre  Gales,  the  reading  of  the 
best  MSS,  Zimmer  evolves  Dextra  Gallia,  or  the  land  conquered 
by  Eoricus.  The  form  Dextra  Gallia  was  found  he  thinks  in  the 
tales  of  the  romanized  Britons  (Armoricans)  through  whom  Ar- 
thurian legend  was  transmitted  to  the  literature  of  Northern 
France. 

Paris  and  Loth  identify  Erec  with  a  celebrated  Armorican  hero 
named  Weroc,  whose  country  was  called  Bro-Weroc  or  "Land  of 

12 Karrenritter  CXV;  ZfS  XIII  (1891)  35. 

"Paris,  Rom.  XX  (1891)  157,  166;  Loth,  RO  XIII,  482,  503,  n.  Lot,  Rom. 
XXV  (1896)  588  f . ;  Brugger,  ZfS  XXVII  (1908)  75  ff.  rejects  the  theories  of  both 
groups,  offering  one  which  does  not  seem  very  plausible. 


122  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Weroc,"  but  they  think  Carnant  is  in  England  and  has  been  con- 
fused by  Crestien  with  Nantes  on  the  Loire.  D 'outre  Gales  or 
D'estre  Gales  they  think  a  portion  of  Wales.  Lot  shows  that  there 
was  an  Erec  <Guerec,  count  of  Nantes,  son  of  Alain  Barbe-Torte 
who  ruled  the  city  together  with  his  brother  Hoel  until  the  latter 's 
death  in  981,  after  which  he  ruled  alone  until  his  own  death  about 
990.  Both  Guerec  and  Hoel  were  the  subject  of  legendary  recitals. 
The  primitive  hero  bore  the  name  Geraint 14  which  has  nothing  to 
do  with  Erec.  Geraint  was  crowned  at  Carnant  in  insular  Corn- 
wall. The  count  of  Nantes  has  inherited  the  history  of  Geraint, 
whence  the  confusion.15  This  seems  to  be  a  plausible  explanation. 
The  error  could  have  arisen  with  either  Crestien  or  his  source,  most 
probably  with  the  latter.  The  theory  is  supported  by  the  fact  of 
Crestien 's  using  both  terms.  Carnant  (2315)  and  Nantes  (6553, 
6562,  6584,  6654,  6865).  Since  Carnant  is  comparatively  unim- 
portant and  occurs  but  once,  the  form  may  be  an  error  on  the  part 
of  either  Crestien  or  his  scribe,  but  this  is  not  likely ;  the  MSS  16 
are  unanimous  for  Carnant  in  the  one  place  and  Nantes  in  the 
other  five. 

It  may  be  argued  that  as  the  main  scene  of  Erec  is  insular,17 
if  Crestien  intended  the  hero's  capital  to  be  at  Nantes  he  would 
have  described  Arthur's  sea  voyage  thither  or  at  least  have  men- 
tioned his  embarkation,  but  this  does  not  necessarily  follow.  Al- 
though in  Cliges,  where  the  scene  shifts  from  England  to  Brittany 
to  Greece  and  back  to  England,  the  poet  is  careful  to  inform  us  of 
nearly  all  departures  and  arrivals,18  in  Yvain,  with  the  scene  at 
Carduel  en  Gales  and  Chester,  the  Breton  forest  of  Broceliande  is 
introduced  and  yet  there  is  no  mention  of  a  passage  of  the  sea  (see 
pp.  123  f.).  Thus,  the  failure  to  mention  a  sea  voyage  militates 
neither  for  nor  against  any  particular  locality  for  Erec's  realm. 
The  fact  that  Nantes  occurs  repeatedly  in  the  coronation  passage 
which  is  far  removed  from  the  passage  containing  Carnant  shows 
that  Crestien,  in  this  scene,  doubtless  had  in  mind  Nantes  on  the 
Loire.    The  expression,  Nantes  en  Bretaingne  (6553)  is  as  much 

14  Geraint  was  king  of  Devon,  675ca  (Rom.  XXV,  11). 

15  See  also  Edens,  R.,  Erec — Geraint,    (Rostock  diss,  and  Preisschrift)    1910,  p. 

142. 

16  See  "Large  E,"  MS  variants. 

17  Witness  the  Arthurian  court  at  Cardigan,  Tintagel,  etc. 

18  vv.  235,  423,  1096,  2402,  2410,  4325,  4578,  5117,  6682  ff. 


GEOGRAPHY 


123 


of  a  puzzle  as  Carduel  en  Gales.  The  only  solution  of  the  problem 
is  that  it  is  a  clear  case  of  confusion  and  simply  offers  another  proof 
of  Crestien 's  indifference  to  his  geography. 

It  may  be  added  that  Zimmer 19  in  support  of  his  view  argues 
that  the  dependencies  represented  at  the  coronation  (6646) — 
Anjou,  Le  Maine  and  Poitou  naturally  owe  allegiance  to  Erec,  but 
the  others  present — the  Normans,  Bretons,  Scotch,  Irish,  those 
from  Cornwall  and  England  are  Arthur's  vassals.    I  do  not  see 
any  good  reason  for  this  distinction,  but  I  do  find  a  good  reason 
against  it.   If  we  turn  to  the  Brut  10367  we  find  that  Poitou  and 
Anjou  are  both  mentioned  as  conquests  made  under  the  direction 
of  Arthur,  and  the  people  of  these  provinces  are  later  distinctly 
named  as  Arthur's  vassals.    Arthur  summons  to  his  coronation 
Tuz  ses  baruns  (10498)  among  them  are  Poitevins  and  Angevins 
(10505).    Again,  Arthur  summons  his  barons  to  prepare  for  the 
war  with  Rome  (11403).    Among  them  are  Cil. ....  .d' Anjou  et 

de  Poitou  (11418).  It  has  already  been  shown  that  this  corona- 
tion passage  in  the  Erec  has  probably  been  imitated  partly  from 
the  Brut  (pp.  18  ff.).  Therefore,  it  seems  more  than  likely  that 
Crestien  means  here,  vassals  of  Arthur,  not  of  Erec,  especially 
since  it  is  Arthur  who  orders  them  called  (6560).  This  is  but 
another  proof  of  Crestien 's  indifference  to  his  geography. 

Broceliande.  Another  problem  to  be  met  is  the  location  of 
Broceliande  in  the  Yvain.  Has  Crestien  transported  the  Breton 
forest  to  England  for  the  purpose  of  his  fountain  story  or  are  we 
to  consider  the  fountain,  and  hence  Laudine's  realm  as  situated  in 
Brittany?  Let  us  examine  the  text.  The  story  opens  with  the 
court  at  Carduel  en  Gales  (7).  This  points  at  least  to  an  insular 
location  (see  pp.  73  ff.).  Three  visits  are  made  to  the  fountain  each 
by  a  different  person.  Visit  I.  Calogrenanz  (175  ff.)  The  start- 
ing point  is  not  named,  but  nothing  is  said  about  a  sea  voyage. 
However,  as  we  have  no  point  of  departure  the  evidence  offered 
by  this  visit  is  invalidated.  Visit  II.  Yvain  (747  ff.)  The  starting 
point  is  Carduel  en  Gales.   He  goes 

762       ....    ehascun  jor  tant 

Par  montaingnes  et  par  valees 
Et  par  forez  longues  et  lees, 

18  Brugger  agrees,  ZfS  XX,  90. 


124  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


Par  leus  estranges  et  sauvages, 

Et  passa  mainz  felons  passages. 
It  seems  strange  in  such  a  detailed  description  not  to  find  some 
mention  of  a  sea  voyage  if  Crestien  had  one  in  mind.  Of  course 
passages  may  be  interpreted  as  a  sea  journey,  but  the  adjective 
mainz  rather  suggests  mountain  defiles,  for  Yvain  would  not  be 
crossing  many  seas.  Then  too,  there  is  no  mention  of  a  ship.  Visit 
III.  Arthur  and  his  court  (2171).  The  journey  is  not  described; 
the  scene  opens  with  Arthur  already  at  the  fountain.  This  account, 
also,  must  be  ruled  out. 

We  have  left  then  a  visit  made  by  Yvain  to  the  fountain  of 
Broceliande.  He  starts  from  Carduel  en  Gales  and  his  journey  is 
entirely  inland.  Broceliande,  too,  may  be  regarded  as  a  case  of 
confusion.  Crestien  has  laid  his  scene  in  the  western  part  of  the 
island  as  shown  by  the  mention  of  Carduel  (7)  and  Chester  (2680), 
but  he  needed  the  fountain  Broceliande  for  the  purpose  of  his 
story  and  he  took  it  regardless  of  its  geographical  location.  He 
was  not  thinking  of  geography  but  of  the  psychological  problem 
involved  in  the  events  that  were  about  to  take  place  by  the  side 
of  this  fountain,  hence  inaccuracy  here  is  natural  and  justifiable.20 

General  Geography 
Another  evidence  of  Crestien's  indebtedness  to  Wace  is  in  the 
general  geography  of  Erec  and  Cliges  in  comparison  with  that  of 
the  other  romances.  By  far  the  greater  number  of  names  common 
to  "Wace  and  Crestien  are  to  be  found  in  these  two  poems,  as  the 
table  shows. 

Angleterre21  E       C  L 

Anjo  E 

Avalon  E 

Bade  L 

Bretaingne  I  E       C       L  Y 

20 1  would  not  seem  to  push  this  theory  of  Crestien's  geographical  indifference  too 
far;  indifference  seems  evident  in  most  cases  but  in  Cliges  Crestien  is  remarkably  accu- 
rate in  his  insular  geography.  (See  pp.  125,  129).  There  is,  as  I  shall  try  to  show,  a 
reason  for  this.  Foerster  confirms  this  opinion  of  Crestien's  indifference  to  geography  as 
follows:  "Eine  letzte  Bemerkung  iiber  die  Geographie  unseres  Romans  (Yvain).  Der 
Dichter  kennt  keine — ist  die  anwort.  Die  Sturmquelle  liegt  zwar  sicher  in  der  fest- 
landischen  Bretagne  (v.  189,  697),  wahrend  Artus  seinen  Hof,  wo  das  Quellenabenteuer 
Calogrenanz  erzahlt  wird,  ebenso  sicher  in  Carduel  (v.  7)  und  ein  ander  Mai  in  Cestre 
(v.  2680) — also  beidemal  auf  der  Insel  Brittannien  halt.  Von  irgend  einer  Seefahrt, 
die  doch  von  Carduel  aus  nach  Broceliande  notig  ist,  ist  nirgends  die  Rede."  Yvain, 
3rd  ed.  LIII. 

21  Crestien's  spelling  has  been  followed. 


GEOGRAPHY 


125 


Xli  V  -  / 

22f! 

t*o  p  pl  i  n  rl  p 

v 

On  nto  rhi  rp 

E 

XU 

n 
\j 

v_y  CIA  1XU  J_L 

T , 

p 

X 

Clpstrp 

Y 

X 

Cornoaille 

E 

C 

L 

Dovre 

Esoopp 

E 

-Li 

Evroic 

E 

Franep 

E 

n 

THanfirps 

JL    XCXl-l\wl.  1  \_/  kj 

n 

(ralp^! 

E 

Y 

X 

Crfi \\j\cm  pf  nrf 

GUUg  LIvJLvl  L 

n 

Orfl  VOl  P     frfl  1  Vffcl  P 

E 

P 

X 

(t  1 0  P  P  P  Q  i"  T*  P 

E 

XU 

frll  1  Tl  PPQtl*P 

TTo-n+nTl  P 
Hail  l\j  J_IC 

f! 

TylflnfiP 

E 

AH 

Tjothitpq 

UU11U.1  Cij 

o 

XJ 

Tjoxryp^i 

p 

X 

NoriTia  ndi  p 

c 

Orcanie 

p 

Ossenefort 

c 

Peitou 

E 

Tamise 

c 

Tintaguel 

E 

p 

15-16    17      7         4  6 

This  proportion  is  exactly  what  one  would  expect  from  the  preced- 
ing discussion  as  to  Crestien's  relation  to  Wace  in  episodes  and 
characters.  On  the  whole,  Erec  and  Cliges  stand  much  nearer  Wace 
than  do  the  other  romances.  This  matter  of  geographical  names 
but  confirms  the  conclusions  already  reached.  Of  course  it  is 
scarcely  worth  while  to  point  out  that  isolated  names  such  as  Eng- 
land, London,  France,  Normandy  would  be  no  indication  of  bor- 
rowing from  the  Brut;  but  the  groupings  of  these  names  and 

22  See  pp.  121  ft. 

23  Mentioned  only  in  connection  with  Philip  of  Flanders  in  the  dedication.  It  has 
nothing  to  do  with  the  geog.  of  the  story,  hence  I  exclude  it. 


126  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

others,  and  the  numbers  in  which  they  occur  in  a  single  romance, 
imply,  since  we  find  similar  groupings  in  the  Brut,  an  influence 
from  that  source.  A  mere  glance  at  parallel  tables  of  place-names 
in  "Wace's  chronicles  and  Crestien's  romances  would  immediately 
suggest,  without  going  further,  the  near  relation  of  Erec  and 
Cliges  to  the  chronicles  and  the  remoteness  of  the  others,  espe- 
cially, Yvain,  the  connection  of  which  with  the  histories  hangs  by  a 
very  slender  thread. 

Some  of  these  place-names  need  to  be  examined  in  detail. 
Avalon.    Crestien  gives  Avalon  but  a  passing  mention,  in  the 
list  of  wedding  guests  in  Erec  1954 : 

Et  Guigomars  ses  frere,  i  vint; 

De  l'lsle  d'Avafon  fu  sire. 
This  reference  is  not  likely  to  have  come  from  Wace  since  his  only 
allusions  to  the  place  are  in  connection  with  Arthur's  sword  which 
he  tells  us  was  forged  in  Pile  d 'Avalon,  and  in  respect  to  the 
passing  of  Arthur  (B  9516,  13683).  The  only  possibility  of  chron- 
icle influence  here  is  through  the  connection  of  Avalon  with  the 
Arthurian  court,  but  the  relation  is  so  slight  as  scarcely  to  admit 
of  such  a  conjecture.24 

Escoce.  The  use  of  Escoce  in  Erec  1970,  and  in  Cliges  1481 
is  reminiscent  of  Arthur's  conquests  in  Scotland  recounted  in  the 
Brut.  Aguisel,  king  of  Scotland,  was  a  vassal  of  Arthur's  (9870). 
Escoce  in  the  above  lines  indicates  a  feudal  relation  with  Arthur. 

Galvoie.  Among  the  vassals  whom  the  Arthur  of  the  Brut  sum- 
mons to  the  coronation  are  ecus  de  Galewee  (10515).  The  editor 
explains  Galewee  as  "Galway,  ville  d'  Irelande  dans  la  province 
de  Connaught"  (B  II,  p.  97,  n.  1).  This  is  probably  an  error.  The 
Galvoie  of  the  romances,  often  mentioned  in  connection  with  the 
Orkneys,  seems  to  have  been  identical  with  the  present  Galloway, 
a  portion  of  Southwestern  Scotland  on  Solway  Firth.25* 

In  Erec  (6818)  Li  rois  de  Gavoie,  together  with  Gawain,  is 
sent  to  conduct  Enide  to  the  Queen.  Therefore  he  is  a  vassal  of 
Arthur's  and  the  passage  may  echo  Wace's  lines  which  name  ceus 
de  Galewee  as  Arthur's  retainers.    Galvoie  occurs  three  times  in 

24  On  Avalon  and  its  place  in  Arthurian  literature  see  Lot,  Bom.  XXIV,  497  flf.,  XXVII, 
529  ff.;  Paris,  Bom.  XXVII,  573  n.,  XXX  (1901)  17;  Kritische  Jahresbericht  II,  466; 
Warren,  MLN  XIV  (1899)  col.  93. 

258  See  p.  142,  n.  17  and  Yvain,  2nd  ed.  p.  208;  Lot,  Bom.  XXV,  3. 


GEOGRAPHY 


127 


Perceval  where  it  seems  to  have  no  historical  significance  and  may 
signify  an  other- world  region  (6564,  8349,  8612).  It  is  clearly 
here  a  place  whence  no  traveler  is  supposed  to  return,  and  is  sit- 
uated on  the  sea.25b 

H  ant  one.  When  Alexander  and  his  companions  reach  Britain 
they  land  at  Hantone : 

C  272      Sans  grant  peril  et  sanz  esmai 

Vindrent  au  port  dessoz  Hantone. 
They  remain  dessoz  Hantone  over  night  (287)  and  the  next  morn- 
ing they  leave  dessoz  Hantone  for  Winchester  (300)  where  Arthur 
is  then  residing.  Hantone,  the  present  Southampton,  is  an  im- 
portant port  in  the  chronicles.  Geoffrey  employs  invariably  the 
form  portus-um  Hamonis.  According  to  his  etymology,  the  place 
was  named  for  Hamo,  a  Roman  leader  who  was  killed  there  (IV, 
xiii).  Wace  in  the  Brut  also  uses  this  form,26  in  every  instance 
but  one,  and  there  he  has  Suthantone  (11471).  He  employs  both 
forms  in  the  Rou  also :  Hantone,  Sohantone.  G.  Paris,  in  com- 
menting on  the  Hantone  passage  27a  in  the  Cliges,  suggests  that 
the  proper  reading  is  de  or  -a  Sozhantone  or  Southampton.  This 
seems  a  reasonable  suggestion.  On  looking  at  the  text  we  find  that 
although  the  reading  dessoz  Hantone  could  stand  for  lines  273  and 
287,  it  is  not  clear  for  line  300.  To  say  (when  they  are  already  at 
Hampton)  :  "They  turned  below  Hampton"  and  took  the  straight 
road,  etc.,  is  not  intelligible,  but :  They  turned  from  Southampton 
etc.  is  perfectly  clear.  The  change  to  Sozhantone  in  287  necessi- 
tates another  alteration,  the  preposition  de(s)  must  become  a; 
Paris  makes  this  emendation.  This  requires  altogether  four  changes 
in  the  MS.  Good  as  the  emendation  is,  there  are  three  objections  to 
it.  1.  It  requires  too  many  changes  in  the  MS.  2.  All  the  MSS  27b 

2Eb  See  Miss  Weston,  The  Legend  of  Sir  Perceval,  London,  1906,  I,  186. 
26  The  spelling  varies  however:    Port  de  JIaustone  2667;  Hanstone,  5115;  port  a 
Hantosne,  9395;  Hantone,  13587. 
2'*JdS,  1902,  63. 

276  See  "Large  Cliges,"  MS  variants.  Foerster's  view  in  Clig'es,  3rd  ed.  p.  187,  p.  273 
confirms  objection  3  to  Paris's  emendations.  "Alle  HSS.  geben  des(s)oz  hantone,  287 
SCTR,  dessoz.  h.  oder  de  h,  A  P,  was  Pa[ris]  in  de  Soz  hantone  andern  will,  der  das 
widersprechende  287  gewaltsam  in;  A  Sozhantone  bessert,  'nom  usite'  dans  des  chroni- 
ques  et  romans  du  XHe  si&cle,  tandisque  Hamptone  ou  Hantone  simplement  ne  figure  que 
dans  les  poemes  de  Bovon  de  H — Allein  die  sammtlichen  Hss  sind  dagegen ;  f erner  stent 
Hantone  auch  D  M  97,  Mg  6227,  s.  Langlois:  Table  [des  noms  propres],  wahrend  ein 
Sozhantone  bei  ihm  gar  nicht  zu  finden  ist."  As  we  have  seen,  Wace's  practice  in  the 
use  of  Hantone  shows  Paris's  statement  to  be  incorrect. 


128  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

unite  in  dividing  the  word  as  Foerster  has  it  in  his  texts.  3.  Han- 
tone  is  the  form  used  by  "Wace  in  every  case  but  one,  and  therefore 
would  offer  a  source  for  Crestien's  Hantone.  Of  course  it  is  ob- 
vious that  the  meaning  is  "Southampton,"  but  whether  Crestien 
intended  to  write  Southampton  is  another  question.  Dessoz  is  a 
common  enough  preposition  to  admit  of  being  used  with  Hantone 
without  implying  an  error  in  the  writing.  It  seems  to  me  that 
Crestien  may  have  had  before  him  both  of  "Wace 's  forms :  Hantone 
and  Suthantone,  that  he  used  deliberately  the  form  Hantone  in 
273  and  287,  but  that  in  300  he  either  confused  his  forms  and  so 
made  a  line  that  was  not  clear  or  intended  to  write  what  would 
read  De  Sozhantone,  but  made  the  wrong  division.  The  latter  may 
have  been  a  scribal  error. 

Orcanie.  In  the  Gawain  part  of  the  Perceval  Arthur  holds  his 
court  at  Orcanie  (8853,  9065,  9127,  9155).  This  circumstance  is  also 
reminiscent  of  Wace.  Among  the  foreign  kings  who  submit  to  Ar- 
thur during  his  wars  for  the  conquest  of  Britain  is  Gonvals  qui  ert 
rois  d'Orquenie  (9945).  Later,  among  the  coronation  guests  are  Cels 
qui  tindrent  Orcanee  (10516).  The  connection  between  these  pas- 
sages in  the  Brut  and  the  Perceval  is  obvious.  Arthur  has  many 
royal  residences  among  which  it  is  his  habit  to  move  frequently 
even  in  the  course  of  one  romance.  That  he  should  plan  to  keep 
Pentecost  in  the  territory  of  one  of  his  vassals  is  not  at  all  sur- 
prising. 

There  is  another  possible  tie  here  between  Wace  and  Crestien. 
According  to  the  chronicles  Gawain 's  father,  Lot,  is  made  by  Ar- 
thur, king  of  Norway.  Loth  28  says  that  the  title  ' '  king  of  Orcanie ' ' 
frequently  given  Lot  in  the  French  romances  is  equivalent  to  roi 
de  Norwege,  for  in  early  times  the  extreme  north  of  the  continent 
and  the  adjacent  islands  were  all  called  "Norwegia."  We  may 
remember  that  Arthur  conquers  all  this  territory  at  the  time  he 
bestows  Norway  upon  Lot :  Islande,  (9941)  Orquenie  (9945,)  Gal- 
lande  (the  island  of  Gothland  in  the  Baltic  Sea,  9946)  Norguingue 
(Norway  10050)  Danemarce  (10124).  The  fact  that  Arthur 
holds  his  court  in  Orcanie  nowhere  else  but  in  this  one  romance,  and 
only  in  the  Gawain  portion  of  it,  may  be  an  echo  of  the  historical 
relations  between  Gawain,  Lot,  Arthur,  and  Norway. 

™RC  XVI  (1895)  86. 


GEOGRAPHY 


129 


Tintaguel.  The  connection  of  Arthur  with  Tintagel  is  another 
clearly  historical  allusion.  In  Erec  Arthur  is  holding  court  there  in 
the  latter  part  of  the  story  (6518,  6528) .  Among  the  wedding  guests, 
there  is  a  certain  Daviz  de  Tintaguel  (1959),  and  in  Perceval  a 
combat  is  held  between  Melianz  de  Liz  and  Tiebaut  de  Tintaguel 
(4696  ff.)  These  last  references  are  not  significant,  but  the  first 
two  probably  go  back  to  the  chronicle  story  of  the  amour  of 
Uther  and  Ygerne,  and  of  Arthur's  birth.  (See  pp.  103  f.,  108  ff.) . 
It  is  natural  that  the  romancer  should  have  Arthur  reside  at  Tin- 
tagel in  memory  of  his  parents '  amour. 

Crestien  in  England 

After  the  geographical  difficulties  into  which  Crestien  is  con- 
stantly plunging  his  readers,  the  comparative  accuracy  with  which 
he  describes  places  in  the  Arthurian  part  of  Cliges  suggests  the 
possibility  of  his  personal  knowledge  of  the  scene  he  here  por- 
trays. The  story  opens  with  the  court  at  Winchester,  famous  in 
chronicle  history  as  the  scene  of  Uther 's  coronation,  and  in  Cres- 
tien's  day,  still  the  capital  of  England.  Alexander,  arriving  at 
Southampton,  takes  the  straight  road  (301)  to  "Winchester.  The 
inference  is  that  the  distance  is  not  great;  this  agrees  with  actual 
conditions,  for  the  road  from  Southampton  to  Winchester  is  a 
straight  stretch  of  little  more  than  ten  miles.  Next,  Arthur  in 
Brittany  gets  news  of  Angres 's  treachery,  from  London  and  Canter- 
bury by  way  of  Dover  (1054).  When  Arthur  with  his  troops 
gathered  in  Brittany,  reaches  England  he  goes  directly  to  London, 
where  he  makes  preparations  to  move  on  to  Windsor,  the  strong- 
hold in  which  Angres  has  secured  himself  (1210  ff.).  Windsor  is 
then  described,  (1238)  in  a  purely  conventional  way,  however,  but 
the  account  of  the  situation  may  be  noticed: 

1256     Li  chastiaus  sist  an  un  pui  haut 
Et  par  dessoz  li  cort  Tamise, 
Sor  la  riviere  est  l'oz  assise, 

-M-  4J.  jt  -V- 

"7V"  VY"  "/V  "■>»-  ~W  VT  TV" 

1261     L'oz  s'est  sor  Tamise  logiee: 
Tote  la  pree  est  herbergiee 
Des  pavellons  verz  et  vermauz. 
Es  colors  se  fiert  li  solauz 
S'an  reflanboie  la  riviere 
Plus  d'une  grant  liue  pleniere. 


130  TTTE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

When  the  first  sally  is  made,  the  one  in  which  Alexander  wins  his 
spurs,  the  Greeks:  El  gue  tuit  an  an  frois  s'esleissent  (1317). 
This  gives  us  the  exact  situation  of  Arthur's  troops.  They  are  on 
the  east  bank  of  the  river,  encamped  in  the  low  meadowland, — 
just  the  position  an  army  would  take  after  having  marched  on 
"Windsor  from  London.  When  the  organized  attack  is  made,  the 
king  has  no  difficulty  in  getting  his  army  across  the  river  because, 
the  drought  has  made  the  fords  very  shallow  (1485  ff.)  ;  a  condi- 
tion quite  possible  when  we  remember  the  low  lying  meadowland 
on  the  east  bank  of  the  Thames  and  the  frequent  shallows  through 
this  part  of  the  course.  When  the  army  is  across,  one  division  is 
detailed  to  close  in  on  the  lower  side  of  the  castle  which  would 
mean  going  to  the  right,  and  the  other  portion,  to  mount  the  hill 
directly  in  front.  Everything  in  the  description  seems  to  agree 
with  the  actual  facts.  The  only  difficulty  is  that  there  are  many 
other  castles  answering  to  this  description  equally  well.  The  com- 
monest site  for  a  redout  was  a  hill  with  a  river  winding  below  it, 
both  forming  natural  defenses.  A  glance  at  the  chateaux  along 
the  Loire  and  its  tributaries:  Blois,  Amboise,  Loches,  Chinon  will 
show  each  crowning  the  top  of  a  precipitous  slope  with  a  rather 
shallow  river  flowing  at  the  foot.  The  evidence  for  Crestien's 
familiarity  with  Windsor  is  strong,  but  it  is  not  conclusive.29 

Again,  in  the  Cliges  portion  of  the  narrative,  Alexander  and 
Soredamors  on  returning  to  Greece  embark  at  Shoreham  (2440). 
Shorham,  some  miles  east  of  Southampton,  is  quite  a  possible  point 
from  which  to  sail ;  further,  it  is  not  mentioned  in  either  chronicle. 
Later,  Cliges  when  he  visits  England  to  receive  that  instruction  in 
proesce  and  vertu  which  his  father  has  urged,  goes  first  to  Galingue- 
fort  (Wallingford)  where  he  learns  that  the  court  is  about  to  en- 
gage in  a  tournament  on  the  plains  of  Oxford,  not  far  distant 
(4588  ff.).  The  relation  of  Wallingford  to  Oxford  and  the  sit- 
uation of  the  latter  place  in  low-lying  land  are  correctly  given.  Wal- 
lingford seems  too  unimportant  a  place  to  be  mentioned  by  any 
one  who  had  not  been  in  the  region.  Crestien  might  have  heard 
of  it  through  other  sources,  however.    Though  it  does  not  occur  in 

29  Paris  cites  all  of  these  illustrations,  and  especially  Windsor  as  striking  evidence  in 
favor  of  Crestien's  personal  knowledge  of  these  places.  He  thinks  also  that  the  mention 
of  Gloegestre  and  Evroic,  Corque  in  the  Erec  point  in  this  direction  likewise.  (JdS, 
1902,  302).    See  Foerster's  comment  on  this  view,  C,  3rd  ed.  1910,  XXXIII,  n. 


GEOGRAPHY 


131 


the  Brut,  it  does  appear  in  the  Bou  and  in  close  proximity  to 
Oxford : 

I,  p.  211,  v.  121,  Oxenfort 

I,  p.  211,  v.  128,  Walingefort 
According  to  Freeman's  Norman  Conquest  Windsor,  Wallingford, 
and  Oxford  were  prominent  in  the  Anglonorman  period.  "Wind- 
sor, Wallingford ....  were  built  in  the  course  of  William 's  reign 
(1066-1089) . . .  .Windsor  was  the  most  famous  and  abiding  of  all." 
(IV,  69)  "Oxford  castle  founded  by  Robert  of  Oily  1072,  a  fortress 
that  played  a  great  part  in  the  wars  of  the  preceding  century."  (p. 
46).  Oxford,  Wallingford  and  Windsor  are  castles  defended  by 
the  Abbot  of  Abington  between  1071  and  1084  (p.  339).  The  close 
association  of  the  three  names  in  the  history  of  the  period  makes  it 
possible  for  Crestien  to  have  attained  his  information  regarding 
them  through  some  other  channel  than  personal  experience.  Though 
he  may  have  derived  his  names  from  the  chronicles  he  did  not  get 
his  topography  from  Wace,  hence  he  must  have  known  the  ground 
himself  or  have  obtained  his  information  from  some  one  else  thor- 
oughly familiar  with  it,  perhaps  from  some  one  in  Beauvais  where 
he  got  his  Uvre.  The  latter  supposition,  that  the  knowledge  is  sec- 
ond hand,  is  the  more  likely  since  he  shows  no  such  familiarity  with 
English  topography  in  his  other  romances.  That  Crestien  should 
exhibit  an  accuracy  here  not  evident  in  his  other  narratives  is  not 
surprising  when  we  recall  the  close  connection  between  the  Brut 
and  the  Cliges  in  these  passages.  His  close  adherence  to  his  source 
here  may  have  led  him  to  be  more  careful  than  usual  with  his  lo- 
cations. 


Chapter  V 

Romantic  Background — Social  and  Moral  Ideas — Conclusions 

Under  the  caption  "Romantic  Background"  may  be  discussed 
the  Arthurian  Court,  the  Round  Table,  the  Castle  of  Maidens,  and 
the  Dolorous  Mount.1  Although  these  features  find  a  place  in  the 
Historia  and  the  Brut  it  is  very  improbable  that  they  all  reached 
Crestien  through  the  chronicle  source.  With  the  exception  of  the 
Arthurian  Court  they  have  a  distinctly  popular  flavor  and  suggest, 
rather  than  any  obligation  of  Crestien  to  Wace,  the  more  likely  pos- 
sibility that  both  Wace  and  Crestien  go  back  to  a  common  source. 
The  Arthurian  Court,  however,  is  a  literary  creation  established 
by  Geoffrey  of  Monmouth  (See  pp.  4  ff.)  and  enlarged  on  by 
Wace;  hence  the  likelihood  of  transmission  through  the  chronicles 
is  much  less  uncertain  here  than  in  some  other  cases. 

Geoffrey  presents  the  court  of  Arthur  as  a  perfect  organiza- 
tion, famous  the  world  over  as  the. model  of  elegance  and  prowess, 
the  members  of  which  are  as  invincible  in  the  courtly  exercises  of 
love  and  the  tourney  as  they  are  when  on  the  battle  field  contend- 
ing against  the  power  of  Rome.  Wace's  picture,  by  the  addition 
of  the  Round  Table,  and  a  more  chivalric  and  brilliant  coloring, 
forms  a  romantic  background  ready  made  for  the  Arthurian  poet. 
The  most  elaborate  court  scene  is  that  of  the  grand  coronation  al- 
ready treated  in  connection  with  the  Erec  marriage  and  coronation 
ceremonies  (pp.  18  ff.).  It  will  be  necessary  here  only  to  em- 
phasize the  attractive  details.  The  choice  of  time — the  feast  of 
Pentecost ;  the  choice  of  location — the  stately  city  of  Carlion-upon- 
Usk  with  its  deep  forests,  rich  meadows,  and  ancient  churches 
(10478) ;  the  busy  scene  of  preparation  that  stirred  the  city  to  its 
farthest  corners;  the  brilliant  assemblage  who  represented  Ar- 
thur's conquests  from  Ireland  on  the  west  to  Italy  on  the  east,  from 
the  islands  of  the  far  north  to  the  very  borders  of  Spain ;  the  pic- 
turesque ceremony;  the  glittering  banquet  served  by  an  ermine- 
clad  retinue ;  the  diversity  of  amusements  provided ;  and,  to  crown 
all,  Arthur's  unexampled  display  of  largess  at  the  close, — the  ac- 
tion, the  pomp  and  pageantry  of  this  scene  to  which  Wace  devotes 

1  The  Dolorous  Mt.  is  mentioned  only  in  the  HBB.  (see  pp.  9,  142  ff.)- 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


133 


450  lines,  offers  material  that  no  Arthurian  poet  who  had  access 
to  it,  certainly  not  Crestien,  would  be  likely  to  pass  by. 

We  have  already  seen  how  Crestien  probably  utilized  this  pas- 
sage for  episodes ;  we  shall  now  see  how  he  used  it  for  background  21 
purposes. 

The  change  from  the  court  of  the  chronicles  to  that  of  the  ro- 
mances is,  like  the  change  from  the  historical  to  the  romantic 
Arthur,  largely  a  matter  of  technique  (See  p.  48  and  pp.  83  ff.). 
The  Arthurian  court,  however,  even  in  the  chronicles  is  more  or 
less  of  a  background  institution.  It  is  only  when  the  activities  of 
war  are  over,  when  the  heroes  have  won  distinction  in  many  quar- 
ters that  they  assemble  at  Carlion-upon-Usk  to  take  part  in  a  grand 
pageant  testifying  to  the  wealth  and  power  of  the  great  Arthur  and 
the  closeness  of  the  bonds  uniting  his  vast  body  of  retainers 
(B  10455).  And  from  this  courtly  gathering  just  as  in  romance 
the  heroes  go  forth  to  seek  new  fame.  At  the  dramatic  moment, 
when  the  festivities  have  reached  their  height,  enters  the  imperial 
Roman  messenger.  At  once  the  revelry  ceases,  and  the  revelers 
disperse  to  the  grim  business  of  preparing  for  war  (10901). 

With  Crestien  the  court  is  also  at  times  a  mere  scene,  a  place 
through  which  knights  are  constantly  passing  on  their  way  to  and 
from  adventure;  but  there  is  a  difference.  In  Crestien 's  stories  the 
court  is  a  stationary  factor.  It  is  the  center,  and  as  was  shown  in 
treating  the  character  of  Arthur,  it  is  the  king  himself  who  sup- 
ports the  institution.  He  remains  while  the  knights  come  and  go. 
Wherever  our  interest  is  allowed  to  drift  in  the  course  of  the  tale, 
we  always  know  that  we  shall  return  at  least  once  or  twice  either 
with  the  hero  or  with  one  of  his  victims  to  find  Arthur  holding 
court  at  Carduel,  Chester,  Robais,  or  some  other  of  his  numerous 
residences.  In  the  chronicles  the  arrival  of  the  Roman  messenger 
is  not,  as  is  the  coming  of  the  Loathly  Damsel  in  Perceval  (4572), 
a  signal  for  separation  between  Arthur  and  his  knights;  all  go, 
with  Arthur  at  their  head,  to  prepare  for  war  with  Rome. 

The  custom  of  treating  the  court  as  a  point  of  departure  for 
knightly  exercises  of  various  sorts  appears,  as  far  as  our  evidence 
goes,  to  have  started  with  Crestien,  just  as  the  conception  of  the 
inactive  Arthur  seems  to  have  been  introduced  into  romance  by 

2a  See  GGr  II,  i,  496. 


134  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Crestien.  The  function  of  the  court  is  clear  already  in  Erec,  and 
in  the  subsequent  romances  it  plays  the  same  role.  But  even  though 
it  has  in  the  romances  become  a  background  element  it  still  shines 
with  undiminished  glory. 

Crestien  apparently  set  the  fashion  of  bringing  all  chivalric 
enterprise  into  relation  with  Arthur  and  his  circle.  The  surest 
way  of  arousing  interest  he  doubtless  found,  was  to  introduce  his 
audience  to  the  Arthurian  atmosphere  as  soon  as  circumstances 
permitted.  (See  p.  87).  Thus  Erec,  Lancelot,  and  Yvain  all 
open  with  a  court  scene.  In  accordance  with  this  method,  the  poet 
in  Cliges  and  Perceval  connects  with  Arthur,  stories  originally  for- 
eign to  Arthurian  legend.  At  the  beginning  of  the  former  tale 
Crestien  hastens  to  tell  us  that  the  hero  is  del  lignage  le  roi  Artu 
(10) ;  in  the  Conte  du  Graal,  Perceval's  first  adventure  is  with  an 
Arthurian  knight  (288) ;  shortly  afterwards  it  appears  that  the 
hero's  father  met  with  his  reverses  at  the  time  of  Uther  Pen- 
dragon  (419)  and  that  one  of  Perceval's  brothers  went  to  learn 
arms  at  the  court  of  king  Ban  of  Gomeret  (447)  an  Arthurian 
knight  mentioned  in  Erec  (1975)  ;  lastly,  Gawain  when  he  comes 
to  the  Castle  Marvelous,  finds  there  Ygerne  the  mother  of  Arthur 26 
(8706). 

Crestien 's  pictures  of  the  court  all  emphasize  its  power,  mag- 
nificence, and  fame. 

E  27       Un  jor  de  Pasque,  au  tans  novel, 

A  Caradigan,  son  chastel, 

Ot  li  rois  Artus  cort  tenue. 

Ains  si  riche  ne  fu  veiie ; 

Car  mout  i  ot  buens  chevaliers, 

Hardiz  et  corageus  et  tiers, 

Et  riches  dames  et  puceles, 

Filles  a  rois,  jantes  et  beles. 

E  3882    Erec,  fiz  le  roi  Lac,  ai  non. 

Rois  est  mes  pere  d 'Outre-Gales. 
Riches  citez  et  beles  sales 
Et  forz  chastiaus  a  mout  mes  pere : 
Plus  n'an  a  rois  ne  anperere 
Fors  li  roi  Artu  solemant. 


On  this  subject  see  Nitze,  MP  IX  (1912)  4,  n.  1 ;  7,  n.  3 ;  Bruce,  op.  cit.,  XXVII. 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


135 


Celui  an  ost  je  voiremant, 
Car  a  lui  nus  ne  s'aparoille. 

E,  6416    Le  jor  devant  estoit  seingniez 
An  ses  chanbres  priveemant; 
Ansanble  o  lui  ot  solemant 
Cine  canz  barons  de  sa  meison. 
Onques  mes  an  nul  seison 
Ne  fu  trovez  li  rois  si  seus, 
Si  an  estoit  mout  angoisseus, 
Que  plus  n'avoit  jant  a  sa  cort. 
The  four  days'  tournament  held  on  the  plains  before  Oxford  is 
an  indication  of  courtly  grandeur,  and  the  magnificent  reception 
accorded  to  Arthur  and  his  retinue  on  the  occasion  of  their  visit 
to  Laudine  is  probably  an  echo  from  that  brilliant  circle.  Laudine 
and  her  household,  riding  great  Spanish  horses,  approach  Arthur 
and  salute  him  together  with  all  his  followers ;  the  very  castle  walls 
resound  with  their  ringing  welcome ;  flags  fly,  the  walks  are  covered 
with  carpet,  people  throng  the  streets  waiting  to  see  the  great  king ; 
curtains  cover  the  roadways  as  a  protection  against  the  heat  of 
the  sun;  and  what  with  the  noise  of  bells,  horns,  and  drums,  God 
could  not  have  been  heard  to  thunder  there.   Dancing  girls  play  on 
flutes  and  tabors,  youths  leap  and  tumble,  and  the  great  lady  her- 
self, dressed  in  imperial  ermine,  her  head  garlanded  with  rubies, 
comes  forward  radiant  and  smiling  to  hold  the  stirrup  of  the  king 
of  kings  and  lords  of  this  world.3    (Yvain  2329  ff). 
From  the  Perceval  we  learn  that 
3965     .  aCarlion.. 

.  li  rois  Artus  cort  tenoit 
A  feste  bien  priveemant 
Qu'il  n'i  avoit  que  seulemant 
Treis  mile  chevaliers  de  pris. 
This  bit  of  epic  glorification  is  doubtless  imitated  from  the  passage 
in  Erec  above  quoted,  and  has  become  a  stock  situation.   The  same 
observation  may  be  made  of  Yvain  1  ff.,  Perceval  2747  ff.,  and 
9180  ff. 

Concerning  the  renown  of  the  court,  Crestien  writes : 

a  This  scene  may  also  reflect  actual  custom.    See  pp.  26  ff. 


136  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

E  652  Erec  m'apelent  li  Breton. 

De  la  cort  al  roi  Artu  sui, 

Bien  ai  este  trois  anz  a  lui. 

Je  ne  sai,  s'an  ceste  contree 

Vint  onques  nule  renomee 

Ne  de  mon  pere  ne  de  moi ; 
Cliges  is  full  of  allusions  to  the  fame  of  the  court.  From  partly 
the  same  motive  that  prompts  Rivalin  to  visit  the  court  of  Mark,4 
Alexander  is  inspired  to  seek  the  court  of  Arthur : 
68        O'i  ot  feire  manssion 

Del  roi  Artu  qui  lors  regnoit 

Et  des  barons  qui  il  tenoit 

An  sa  compaignie  toz  jorz, 

Par  quoi  iert  dotee  sa  corz 

Et  renomee  par  le  monde. 
Wace,  it  may  be  recalled,  says  that  Arthur's  greatness  was  univer- 
sally feared  (10020  ff.). 

Alexander  will  never  wear  casque  upon  his  head  until  he  is 
dubbed  knight  by  Arthur : 

113       S'irai  presanter  mon  servise 

Au  roi  qui  Bretaingne  justise, 

Por  ee  que  chevalier  me  face. 

Ja  n'avrai  armee  la  face 

Ne  hiaume  el  chief,  jel  vos  plevis, 

A  nul  jor  que  je  soie  vis, 

Tant  que  li  rois  Artus  me  caingne 

L  'espee,  se  feire  le  daingne ; 
He  would  see  those  renowned  nobles  of  a  foreign  land  (150  ff.). 
When  he  and  his  companions  are  conducted  to  Arthur  they  appear : 

310      Devant  le  meillor  roi  del  mont. 
Alexander  addresses  the  king  thus : 

342       "Rois,"  fet  il,  "se  de  vos  ne  mant 

Renomee  qui  vos  renome, 

Des  que  Deus  fist  le  premier  home, 

Ne  nasqui  de  vostre  poissance 

Rois  qui  an  Deu  eiist  creance. 

Rois,  li  renons  qui  de  vos  cort 

4  Thomas,  Tristan,  ed.,  Bedier,  I,  p.  4. 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


137 


M'a  ainene  a  yostre  cort 

Por  vos  servir  et  enorer, 
Later,  Alexander,  instructing  his  son,  Cliges,  tells  hira : 
2603     "Biaus  fiz  Cliges,  ja  ne  savras 

Conoistre,  conbien  tu  avras 

De  proesce  ne  de  vertu, 

Ne  te  vas  esprover  ein^ois 

Et  as  Bretons  et  as  Francois. 
And  Cliges,  who  has  well  learned  his  lesson,  says  to  his  uncle,  Alis : 
4251     "An  Bretaingne,  se  je  sui  preuz, 

Me  porrai  tochier  a  la  queuz 

Et  a  l'essai  fin  et  verai, 

On  ma  proesce  esproverai. 

An  Bretaingne  sont  li  prodome 

Que  enors  et  proesce  renome. 

Et  qui  viaut  enor  guehaignier, 

A  caus  se  doit  aconpaignier ; 

Qu'enor  i  a  et  si  guehaingne. 

Qui  a  prodome  s'anconpaingne."  6 
Zimmer  6  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  Arthurian  court  is  modeled 
on  the  court  of  Charlemagne  and  the  twelve  peers.  He  says :  ' '  Eine 
Umgestaltung  der  Arthursage  unter  Einfluss  der  Charlemagnesage 
ist  Arthurs  Tafelrunde  nach  dem  Muster  von  Charlemagne  and 
seinen  12  Pairs.  Dass  aber  diese  Umgestaltung  nicht  von  Chres- 
tiens,  dem  altesten  bekannten  franzosischen  Bearbeiter  der  bre- 
tonischen  Arthurstoffe,  in  die  Sage  gebracht  wurde,  dafiir  ist 
Waee  in  seiner  Uebersetzung  von  Gottfrieds  Historia  regum  Bri- 
tanniae  mit  dem  bekannten  vers,  Fist  Artus  la  roonde  table  dont 
Breton  dient  mainte  fable,  (B  9996)  ein  vollgiiltiges  Zeugnis  da  der 
Brut  von  Wace  doch  alter  ist  als  irgend  eines  der  Arthurepen 
Chrestiens.  Mit  dieser  Umgestaltung  Arthurs  nach  Charlemagne 
scheint  mir  eine  weitere  in  engem  Zusammenhang  zu  stehen. .  .  . 
Ist  nun  Arthurs  Tafelrunde  eine  Nachahmung  des  Charlemagne 
und  seiner  Pairs,  dann  durfte  unter  den  Helden  der  Tafelrunde 
auch  die  Figur  des  turkischen  Ganelon  nicht  fehlen;  nach  ihr  ist 
Kei  der  breton.   Arthursage  umgebildet. "  (See  p.  93). 

It  is  quite  possible  that  the  idea  of  the  Arthurian  court  was 

6  The  Charrete  contains  no  distinct  reference  to  the  renown  of  Arthur's  court. 
e6GA,  1890,  830. 


138  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CEESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

borrowed  from  the  court  of  Charlemagne  by  Geoffrey,  and  then 
transmitted  by  him  to  Wace  who  added  to  it  the  institution  of  the 
Round  Table,  a  feature  popular  in  origin,  but  made  an  organiza- 
tion of  the  court  after  the  manner  of  the  institution  of  the  Twelve 
Peers  in  the  Court  of  Charlemagne.  Such  an  influence  from  the 
Charlemagne  saga  seems  reasonable  when  we  note  that  there  is 
another  trace  of  this  source  in  the  chronicles :  the  actual  mention 
of  the  Twelve  Peers.  They  engage  in  battle  with  the  Trojans,7  and 
later,  are  numbered  among  Arthur's  vassals  at  the  coronation.8  Fi- 
nally, they  serve  under  Arthur  in  the  war  with  Rome.9  Twice,  we 
see,  they  are  connected  with  Arthur.  If  this  influence  is  admitted 
it  seems  more  likely  to  have  reached  Arthurian  story  in  the  chron- 
icle stage  than  after  the  material  had  developed  into  the  form  of 
romance.  The  spirit  of  chivalry  in  the  twelfth  century,  particular- 
ly in  the  romances  of  the  Round  Table,  had  become  what  Gautier 
calls  ' '  moins  sauvage,  mais  moins  virile, ' ' 10  and  the  romances 
would  naturally  be  more  attracted  to  the  luxuriousness  of  the  Ar- 
thurian court  as  portrayed  by  Geoffrey  and  "Wace,  than  to  the 
austere  and  military  court  of  Charlemagne. 

It  appears  highly  probable  that  Crestien  as  the  first  Arthurian 
romancer  got  his  idea  of  the  Arthurian  court  from  the  Brut  of 
Wace.  His  use  of  Wace's  court  scene  for  his  Erec  may  have  made 
an  impression  on  him  which  bore  fruit  in  all  but  one  of  his  subse- 
quent romances. 

Wace's  famous  account  of  the  Round  Table,  one  of  his  few 
extended  additions  to  the  facts  of  Geoffrey's  narrative,  and  ap- 
parently the  earliest  record  of  this  institution  runs  thus : 
9994     Pur  les  nobles  baruns  qu'il  ot 

Dunt  chascuns  mieldre  estre  cuidot; 

Chascuns  s'en  teneit  al  meillur, 

Ne  nus  n'en  saveit  le  peiur, 

Fist  Artus  la  Roiinde  Table 

Dunt  Bretun  dient  mainte  fable : 

Iluec  seeient  li  vassal 

Tut  chevelment  e  tut  ingal; 

7  HBB  I,  xiii;  B  623. 

8  HBB  IX,  xii;  B  10586. 

9  HBB  IX,  xix;  B  11424. 

10  La  Chevalrie,  Paris,  1884,  32. 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


139 


A  la  table  ingalment  seeient 

E  ingalment  servi  esteient. 

Nus  d'els  ne  se  poei't  vanter 

Qu'il  seist  plus  halt  de  sun  per; 

Tuit  esteient  assis  meiain, 

Ne  n'i  aveit  nul  de  forain. 

N'esteit  pas  tenuz  pur  curteis 

Escoz  ne  Bretuns  ne  Franceis, 

Normant,  Angevin  ne  Flamenc 

Ne  Burguignun  ne  Loherenc, 

De  qui  que  il  tenist  sun  fiu 

Des  oceidant  dusqu'a  Munt  Giu, 

Qui  a  la  curt  le  rei  n'alast, 

E  qui  od  lui  n'i  surjurnast, 

E  qui  n'aveient  vesteiire 

E  euntenance  e  armeiire 

A  la  guise  que  cil  esteient 

Qui  en  la  curt  Artur  serveient 

De  pluisurs  terres  i  veneient 

Cil  qui  pris  a  honur  querreient. 

Tant  pur  oir  ses  curteisies, 

Tant  pur  vee'ir  ses  mananties, 

Tant  pur  conoistre  ses  baruns, 

Tant  pur  aveir  ses  riches  duns. 
The  most  significent  lines  for  our  purpose  are:  Fist  Artus  la 
Roiinde  Table  Dunt  Bretun  dient  mainte  fable.  Bretun  is  gener- 
ally taken  to  mean  Armorican  Britons  because  the  Round  Table  as 
conceived  by  Wace  and  the  French  romancers  was  not  known  to 
the  legends  of  the  Brythonic  Celts.11  The  Round  Table  may  have 
originated  in  an  aetiological  myth  12  common  to  Pan-Celtic  society, 
and  yet  have  taken  the  form  it  possesses  in  the  Brut  only  among 
the  Armorican  Britons.  It  is  scarcely  possible  that  Wace  developed 
the  Table  out  of  the  mythological  conception;  he  found  it  on  Ar- 
morican soil,  perhaps  as  an  actual  table,13  either  distinct  from  or 
already  associated  with  Arthur  in  the  mainte  fable. 

"Zimmer,  GGA,  1890,  518,  795;  A.  C.  L.  Brown,  HSN  VII  (1900)  183  ff.;  See, 
however,  Lot,  Rom.  XXIV,  507,  n.  2,  who  objects  to  Z.'s  theory. 

"Mott,  PMLA  XIII  (1898)  259. 

»  See  Schultz,  op.  ext.,  I,  422. 


140  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

Wace's  other  references  point  only  to  the  meaning,  "a  broth- 
erhood of  knights ' '  and  not  that  of  an  actual  table : 
10553    De  eels  qui  en  la  curt  esteient 
E  qui  le  cors  au  rei  serveient, 
Qui  sunt  de  la  roiinde  table 
Ne  quis  je  mie  faire  fable. 
These  lines  describe  the  persons  who  served  Arthur  at  the  corona- 
tion banquet.   The  following  lines  recount  the  end  of  the  battle  of 
Camlan,  which  resulted  in  the  dissolution  of  Arthurian  society: 
13672    La  peri  la  bele  juvente 

Que  reis  Artus  aveit  nurrie 
E  de  pluisurs  teres  coillie; 
E  cil  de  la  Table  Roiinde 
Dunt  tels  los  fu  par  tut  le  munde. 
Hence,  Wace's  idea  of  the  Round  Table  seems  to  be  that  of  an 
actual  table — the  primitive  meaning,  together  with  the  later  and 
more  common  signification,  that  of  a  chivalric  order.    There  is  no 
evidence  of  Mott's  third  meaning:  the  celebration  of  a  courtly  fes- 
tival on  a  fete-day.14 

Crestien 's  allusions  to  the  Round  Table  are  few  and  brief : 
E  83       De  la  Table  Reonde  estoit, 

Mout  grant  los  an  la  cort  avoit. 
E  1682    De  chevaliers  i  avoit  tant, 

Quant  eles  an  la  sale  antrerent, 
Qui  ancontre  eles  se  leverent, 
Que  je  n'an  sai  nomer  de  disme, 
Le  trezisme  ne  le  quinzisme ; 
Mes  d'auquanz  des  mellors  barons 
Vos  sai  je  bien  dire  les  nons, 
De  gaus  de  la  Table  Reonde, 
Qui  furent  li  mellor  del  monde. 
P  8088    E  estes  vos,  dites  le  moi, 
De  ces  de  la  Table  Reonde 
Des  meillors  chevaliers  del  monde? 
These  passages  show  that  Crestien 's  idea  of  the  Round  Table  was 
nothing  more  than  an  order  of  chivalry.   In  other  words,  it  has  in 
his  hands  become  thoroughly  rationalized.    Thus  his  conception 
differs  from  that  of  Wace  who  saw  in  the  Table  not  only  a  broth- 

uOp.  ext.,  231;  Schultz,  op.  cit,  II,  117. 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


141 


erhood  of  knights,  but  originally,  an  actual  board  around  which 
Arthur's  retinue  might  sit  as  equals.  This  fact,  taken  together 
with  Wace's  assertion  that  the  Table  was  famous  in  Breton  legend, 
would  suggest  that  Crestien  did  not  obtain  his  knowledge  of  this 
institution  through  the  Norman  poet  alone. 

The  Castle  of  Maidens  and  the  Dolorous  Mount  are  mentioned 
in  the  HRB  in  connection  with  the  founding  of  York:  Condidit 

etiam  Ebraucus  oppidum  montis  Agned:  quod  nunc  Castel- 

lum  Puellarum  dicitur  et  montem  Dolorosum  (II,  vii).  Anscombe 
thinks  that  the  appellation  "Mt.  Agned"  is  the  result  of  a  des- 
perate piece  of  etymology  which  sees  a-fwv  "a  struggle,  contest, 
battle,"  and  aytovta,  "anguish  (of  mind)"  in  the  name,  "Agned." 
Castellum  Puellarum,  he  says,  is  an  erroneous  translation  of  Gas- 
tell  Vrewynion,  misread  Castell  Vorivynion,  and  it  shows  that  the 
MS  Geoffrey  used  confused  Agned  with  Breguoinion.15 

Wace's  rendering  of  Geoffrey's  account  runs  thus: 

1564     E  en  un  munt  le  chastel  fist 
Qui  des  Puceles  a  surnum; 
Mais  jo  n'en  sai  pur  quel  raisun 
Li  chastels  ot  num  de  Puceles 
Plus  que  de  dames,  ne  d'anceles. 
Ne  me  fu  dit,  ne  jo  nel  di ; 
Ne  jo  n'ai  mie  tut  o'i, 
Ne  jo  n'ai  mie  tut  veii 
Ne  demande,  ne  retenu- 
Mult  estovreit  a  hume  entendre 
Qui  de  tut  voldreit  raisun  rendre. 

Wace  gets  around  this  desperate  piece  of  etymology  in  spite  of  his 
fondness  for  such  exercises,  by  omitting  the  montis  Agned  and  the 
montem  Dolorosum  altogether.  As  it  is,  the  castellum  puellarum 
appears  to  have  troubled  him  sorely  enough,  and  he  seems  to  have 
wisely  decided  to  keep  out  of  further  etymological  difficulties. 

Crestien 's  nearest  approach  to  the  phrase,  Chastels  de  Puceles 
is  Isle  as  Puceles,  which  may  be  identical  with  the  former  expres- 

15  Local  names  in  the  Arthuriana,  in  ZCP  V,  114.  He  identifies  Agned  with  Acon- 
bury,  by  corruption,  Acornbury,  a  hill  in  Herefordshire.    Comp.  p.  74,  of  this  study. 


142  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


sion,16  and  which  he  uses,  not  in  a  rational  sense,  but  only  in  con- 
nection with  fairy  motifs.  He  uses  it  in  Yvain.  The  hero  comes 
to  a  castle  where  he  sees  in  an  enclosed  garden  or  meadow  (5191  ff.) 
300  damsels  in  wretched  condition.  Addressing  them  he  learns 
that  long  before  his  arrival  the  king  of  the  Isle  as  Puceles  (5256  ff.) 
had  fought  with  two  monsters  of  this  castle  and  had  been  defeated. 
In  consequence,  he  had  to  pay  a  yearly  tribute  of  thirty  maidens 
until  someone  shall  come  who  can  slay  the  monsters  and  free  the 
damsels  from  captivity. 

A  story  somewhat  similar  to  this  is  assigned  to  Gawain  in  the 
Perceval.  Gawain,  following  the  false  knight  who  had  stolen  his 
horse,  comes  to  a  castle  situated  on  a  rock  (7200).  After  defeat- 
ing his  oppressor  in  combat  he  is  entertained  by  a  boatman  (7423) 
who  dwells  below  the  castle.  Here  the  guest  learns  that  the  place 
is  under  the  spell  of  enchantment  (7568).  Within,  dwell  two 
queens,  a  mother  and  a  daughter  (7492  ff.)  whose  husbands  are 
dead,  and  who  have  been  unjustly  deprived  of  their  inheritance. 
Many  orphan  damsels  live  with  these  queens,  waiting  for  some  one 
to  lift  the  spell  and  marry  them  off  honorably  (7543).  This 
place  with  its  story  looks  very  much  like  an  Isle  or  a  Castle  of 
Maidens.17  It  has  the  usual  traits:  high  situation  and  oppressed 
damsels  waiting  for  rescue. 

The  Dolorous  Mount,  a  name  which  Geoffrey  seems  to  use  synon- 
omously  with  the  Castle  of  Maidens,  and  which  Wace  omits  entire- 
ly, is  used  by  Crestien  but  once,  namely:  in  speaking  of  the 

16  Comp.  the  Isle  de  Voirre  which  has  been  identified  with  Glastonbury,  Rom.  X, 
491;  XX,  149;  ZfS  XII  (1890)  246  and  in  the  Chevalier  du  Papegaut,  ed.,  Heucken- 
camp,  57,  the  He  Fort  also  called  the  Roche  sans  Paour,  where  there  is  no  indication  that 
either  place  is  an  actual  island.  The  Isle  as  Puceles  is  now  generally  regarded  as  Edin- 
borough;  thus  in  topography  it  would  well  correspond  with  the  examples  just  cited.  See 
Yvain,  3rd  ed.  217;  HL  XXX,  202;  Bruce,  op.  cit.,  LVIII,  n.  3. 

17  Miss  Paton,  Studies  in  the  Fairy  Mythology  of  Arthurian  Romance,  Boston,  1903, 
88,  is  also  of  this  opinion.  The  adventure  seems  to  show  traces  of  a  fairy-mistress 
episode.  To  continue  the  story,  Gawain  essays  the  adventuie  of  the  castle,  that  of  the 
Magic  Bed,  is  hailed  by  the  captives  with  thanksgiving  over  his  success,  is  held  in  great 
honor  by  the  queen  who  with  much  reluctance  lets  him  go  from  her  to  engage  in  a 
combat;  after  several  experiences  he  returns  to  her  and  is  joyfully  received.  (7569  ff.) 
The  Castle  of  Maidens  is  thus  connected  with  a  fairy-mistress  motif  here  just  as  in 
Yvain.  This  would  accord  with  Miss  Weston's  view,  Perceval,  I,  190.  The  Castle 
Marvelous  seems  to  be  within  the  confines  of  Galloway  (P  8349,  8612)  which  place  has 
the  character  of  an  other-world  region.  See  Miss  Weston,  op.  cit.,  186,  and  this  study, 
p.  126.  The  non-Crestien  portions  of  the  Grail  story  all  mention  the  Castle  of  Maidens 
and  always  with  a  supernatural  coloring.  See  Potvin  ed.,  Elucidation,  401;  Gautier 
cont.  (Nutt's  summary,  17);  Manessier,  20;  Gerbert,  23. 


ROMANTIC  BACKGROUND 


143 


knights  of  the  Round  Table  in  Erec,  Yders  del  Mont  Dolereus  18 
(1724).  The  name  is  simply  mentioned  in  a  long  list  of  knights, 
and  no  clue  is  given  as  to  the  nature  of  either  the  person  or  the 
place. 

There  is  in  the  Perceval  a  Mont  Perilleus  (4686)  which  may 
possibly  be  identified  with  the  Dolorous  Mount.  A  hideous  hag, 
entering  the  court  says  that  whoever  would  win  great  renown 
should  go  Au  pui  qui  est  soz  Montesclere  (4668)  where  a  damsel 
is  seated:  He  who  can  raise  the  siege  and  deliver  the  damsel 
(evidence  of  oppression  again  as  in  the  Castle  of  Maidens)  shall 
have  great  praise  and  be  able  to  wear  in  safety  the  espee  as  es- 
tranges ranges.  Several  knights  make  ready  for  the  adventure, 
saying  they  will  go  Devant  le  Chastel  Orguilleus  e  sor  le  Mont 
Perilleus  (4685).  This  looks  as  though  the  pui  qui  soz  Montes- 
clere and  the  Mont  Perilleus  were  one  and  the  same.19 

It  is  evident  that  Crestien  has  employed  the  Castle  of  Maidens 
and  the  Dolorous  Mount  in  an  entirely  different  way  from  that  in 
which  they  are  used  in  the  Historia,  a  fact  which  leads  to  the 
conclusion  that  Crestien  did  not  borrow  these  features  from  a 
chronicle  source.  It  is  more  probable  that  Geoffrey  20  and  Crestien 
go  back  to  common,  popular  origins,  and  for  the  following  reasons : 

1.  One  of  Geoffrey's  chief  sources  is  popular  history  whether  oral 

or  written.    (See  Fletcher,  op.  cit.,  75). 

2.  The  Castle  or  Isle  of  Maidens  is  an  element  in  Celtic  other- 

world  scenery.  In  the  story  of  Echaid  Airan,21  Mider  took 
Etain  to  a  fairy  habitation  called  Sith  Afernan  and  the 
Mound  of  Fair  Women.    In  the  Imram  Mailduin,  the  hero 

18  He  is  not  to  be  confused  with  Yder,  son  of  Nut. 

19  The  problem  of  identifying  the  Mount  Perilous  or  Dolorous  becomes  still  further 
complicated  if  we  turn  to  the  non-Crestien  portions  of  the  Perceval.  The  Elucidation,  in 
connection  with  the  Castle  of  Maidens,  speaks  of  a  Pont  Perellous  and  a  Castle  Orguellous 
(Potvin,  409)  ;  Gautier  (Nutt,  18)  mentions  the  Mount  Dolorous  as  a  place  where 
Arthur's  knights  sought  for  Perceval;  Gerbert  (Nutt,  23)  mentions  the  Castle  Dolorous 
where  two  knights  lost  their  wits.  The  Mabinogi  of  Peredur  ab  Ewrac  (Mab.  II,  84) 
has  Peredur  fight  the  black  serpent  of  the  earn  on  Mount  Dolorous.  In  the  tail  of  the 
serpent  is  a  stone.  Whoever  can  hold  the  stone  in  one  hand  can  have  in  the  other 
as  much  gold  as  he  desires.  Doubtless  these  places  are  all  related ;  just  how  the  relation 
came  about  is  not  easy  to  determine,  nor  is  the  question  pertinent.  It  is  sufficient  to 
know  that  they  are  elements  of  fairy  machinery. 

20  Wace,  as  is  evident  from  the  nature  of  his  comment  has  merely  translated  Goeff- 
rey  and  does  not  understand  the  nature  of  the  material. 

21  Windisch,  Irische  Texte,  Leipzig,  1880,  117;  Rhys,  Studies  in  Arthurian  Legend, 

126. 


144  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

visits  the  Island  of  the  Chaste  Maiden,  and  the  Isle  of  Mai- 
dens. 

3.  In  this  case  Geoffrey  is  associating  names,  doubtless  taken  from 

a  popular  source,  with  an  actual  place.    In  writing  Castel- 
lum  Puellarum  and  its  synonym,  Montem  Dolorosum  he  may 
merely  have  been  given  popular  names  for  Edinborough. 
(See  p.  141). 

4.  Wace  on  meeting  with  these  terms  tries  to  rationalize  one  of 

them  still  further  by  giving  it  a  literal  explanation,  and  fail- 
ing, omits  the  other  entirely. 

The  Castle  of  Maidens,  then  was  an  element  of  popular  tradi- 
tion the  fairy  nature  of  which  seems  to  have  been  more  fully  un- 
derstood by  Crestien  than  by  the  chroniclers. 

It  now  seems  probable  that  Crestien  has  constructed  his  roman- 
tic background  chiefly  out  of  popular  material.  It  is  not  at  all 
likely  that  his  Castle  of  Maidens  and  Dolorous  Mount  came  from 
the  chronicles.  Wace's  account  of  the  Round  Table  he  doubtless 
knew,  but  it  was  probably  not  his  only  source  of  information  on 
this  subject.  The  Arthurian  Court  is  the  only  feature  traceable 
with  any  certainty  to  a  non-popular  source,  and  this  in  Crestien 's 
hands  seems  more  likely  to  have  owed  its  origin  to  Wace's  Brut 
than  to  the  Charlemagne  saga. 

Social  and  Moral  Ideas 

Several  ideas  of  a  moral  and  social  nature  voiced  by  Wace  find 
a  parallel  in  Crestien 's  romances.  The  first  is  the  value  of  books 
as  preservatives  of  the  deeds  of  the  ancients,  and  the  onward  pro- 
gress of  civilization  from  Greece,  to  Rome,  to  Western  Europe. 
This  sentiment,  found  in  the  introduction  to  the  Rou,  is  repeated 
in  the  opening  lines  of  Cliges.  The  similarity  lies  more  in  the 
general  attitude  of  mind  than  in  special  details — an  attitude  that 
must  have  been  conventional;  hence  the  possibility  of  obligation 
on  Crestien 's  part  is  slight  in  the  extreme.22 

Another  parallel  is  to  be  found  in  a  warning  against  the  evils 
of  sloth,  a  speech  put  into  the  mouth  of  Cador,  Duke  of  Cornwall 
in  the  chronicles  (EBB  IX,  xv;  B  11013  ff.)  The  tenor  is  that  a 
life  of  luxury,  of  interest  in  women  and  amusements  unfits  a  knight 

22  Paris,  JdS,  1902,  345,  n.  2,  is  of  the  same  opinion.  He  calls  it  a  scholastic  com- 
monplace. 


SOCIAL  AND  MORAL  IDEAS 


145 


for  the  performance  of  his  chivalric  duties.  Hence,  war  may  be 
welcomed  as  of  timely  advent.  The  hero's  indulgence  in  this 
form  of  sloth  is  the  primary  motif  of  the  Erec.  It  is  Verliegen- 
heit,  or  what  Tennyson  23  has  well  termed  "Uxoriousness,"  that 
causes  Erec  to  forgo  all  manly  exercises  and  devote  himself  entirely 
to  Enide.  When  aroused  to  the  consciousness  of  this  sin,  he  re- 
deems himself  only  through  a  long  series  of  self-imposed  exper- 
iences whereby  his  valor  is  put  to  the  proof  and  is  not  found 
wanting  (2443  ff.). 24 

Against  falling  into  error  of  this  kind,  Gawain  warns  Yvain 
in  an  effort  to  induce  him  to  leave  Laudine  and  return  to  his 
former  place  in  Arthur 's  court  ( Y  2484  ff . ) . 

Cador's  speech  might  obviously  have  furnished  Crestien  with 
the  general  idea  which  he  developed  by  means  of  specific  illustra- 
tions, yet  here  again  the  point  of  view  is  not  unique.  Sloth  as 
one  of  the  seven  deadly  sins  met  with  universal  condemnation  in 
the  Middle  Ages.  That  two  writers  of  the  twelfth  century  should 
independently  be  inveighing  against  sloth  is  not  only  natural,23  but 
inevitable.  That  they  should  both  have  chosen  this  particular  form 
of  sloth  to  inveigh  against,  is  also  natural  and  inevitable.  Both 
Wace  and  Crestien  wrote  for  courtly  circles;  they  are  here  doubt- 
less reflecting  directly  the  sentiments  of  those  circles.  It  is  of 
course  possible  that  Crestien  was  influenced  by  this  discourse  of 
Cador's,  but  not  at  all  probable,  even  though  it  may  have  been 
known  to  him. 

A  discussion  of  Crestien 's  relation  to  Wace  in  respect  to  social 
ideas  would  be  incomplete  without  a  word  upon  the  most  influen- 
tial social  institution  of  that  day ;  namely,  chivalry.  The  chivalric 
spirit  of  the  Brut  seen  in  the  treatment  of  character,  scene,  and 
incident,  has  been  constantly  pointed  out,  yet  it  seems  well  to 
bring  together  these  scattered  references  in  order  to  emphasize 
the  importance  of  Wace's  chronicle  in  the  transmission  of  chivalric 

23  Cambridge  ed.  of  his  poetical  works,  p.  333,  v.  60. 

2*Cp.  Paris,  Bom.  XX  (1891)  163  ff . ;  Mile.  Borodine,  La  Femme  et  V Amour  au  XII 
Steele  d'apres  les  poems,  de  Chretien  de  Iroyes,  Paris,  1909,  reviewed  by  M.  Roques  in 
Bom.  XXXIX  (1910)  378  ff.  Roques  thinks  the  Joie  de  la  cort  episode  in  Erec  is  de- 
signed to  show  the  dangers  of  sloth,  and  particularly  to  show  the  contrast  between  ro- 
mantic or  selfish  love,  insensible  to  the  activities  of  the  world,  and  the  higher  love  of 
Erec  and  Enide  which  is  ennobled  by  contact  with  the  actual  world  (380).  This  seems 
to  me  a  good  suggestion. 

26  Schultz,  op.  ext.,  II,  1. 


146  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

ideas  to  the  romancers.  The  descriptions  of  Arthur's  court  with 
its  exclusive  institution,  the  Round  Table;  the  attitude  towards 
women, — the  part  they  play  as  incentives  to  combat  where  every 
knight  had  to  prove  himself  before  his  lady  in  three  different  bat- 
tles {Pur  la  noblesce  de  s'amie  Fait  juvenes  hum  chevalerie,  says 
Gawain,  B  11050) ;  the  sympathetic  portrayal  of  the  sinning  Gui- 
nevere, in  contrast  to  Geoffrey's  stern  condemnation;  the  emphasis 
upon  noble  lineage,  upon  courtesy,  prowess,  moderation,  and  other 
chivalric  virtues ;  the  picture  of  the  brilliant  young  Gawain  newly 
returned  from  his  education  at  the  hands  of  Pope  Sulpicius  where 
he  acquired  skill  in  arms,  prowess,  moderation,  and  learned  to 
avoid  pride  and  error,  and  to  do  more  than  he  promised, — a 
portrait  of  an  ideal  damisel  which  might  be  put  beside  Chaucer's 
Yong  Squier;  the  picture  of  Arthur  as  the  consummation  of  a 
Christian  king  and  warrior;  of  Kay  and  Bedver,  glorious  in  deeds 
of  arms ;  of  Uther,  vanquished  and  subdued  by  love  like  Alexander, 
Cliges,  Yvain,  or  any  other  romantic  hero ;  the  admonition  against 
sloth,  a  sin  particularly  antagonistic  to  the  principles  of  chivalry, — 
all  these  details  give  to  the  Brut  a  chivalric  coloring  not  to  be  disre- 
garded in  considering  Wace's  relation  to  the  romancers.  Moreover, 
Waee's  chivalry  is  essentially  the  chivalry  of  refinement  and  ele- 
gance, in  contrast  to  the  austerity  of  that  institution  as  portrayed  in 
the  epic  of  the  preceding  century,  and  is  in  no  way  different  from 
the  chivalry  of  the  Arthurian  romances. 

Conclusions 

It  now  remains  to  formulate  the  conclusions.    We  have  con- 
sidered the  possibilities  of  influence  on  episodes,  characters,  geo- 
graphy, romantic  background,  and  moral  and  social  ideas  in  Cres- 
tien's  five  Arthurian  romances. 
I.  Episodes 

a.   Episodes  that  appear  to  have  been  suggested  wholly  by  the 
Brut : 26 

The  rebellion  of  Angres — Cliges 

Arthur's  proposed  attack  on  Constantinople — Cliges 
King  Rion  of  the  Isles — Perceval 

2t  That  is,  they  do  not  show  traces  of  other  sources.  Whatever  difference  exists 
appears  to  he  due  to  Crestien's  invention. 


CONCLUSIONS 


147 


b.    Episodes  that  may  have  been  suggested  in  part  by  Wace : 
The  marriage  and  coronation  of  Erec  and  Enide — Erec 
Alexander's  exploit  under  the  walls  of  Windsor — Cliges 
The  four  days'  tournament — Cliges 

Hostility  between  Arthur's  kingdom  and  the  land  of  Gorre 

— Lancelot 
Guinevere 's  unfaithfulness — Lancelot 
The  fountain  of  Broceliande — Tvain 
Yvain 's  combat  with  Harpin  de  la  Montaingne — Tvain 
II.  Characters. 

a.  Persons  in  the  Brut  whose  names  are  merely  mentioned  by 

Crestien : 
Aguisel,  King  of  Scotland 
Bedver  the  Butler 
King  Cadovalanz 

Lot,  King  of  Norway  and  father  of  Gawain 
Nut,  father  of  Yder 
Urien,  father  of  Yvain 
Uther  Pendragon 

Yder,  son  of  Nut.    (See  pp.  102  ff.) 
Ygerne 

b.  Persons  borrowed  in  character  but  with  change  of  name  in 

whole  or  in  part : 

Baudemagus  Bladus 

Angres  Modred 

Eion  Riton 

c.  Persons  borrowed  in  name  and  in  character,  whose  character 

is  presented  consistently  with  the  conception  in  the  Brut : 
Gawain 
Yvain 

d.  Persons  whose  characters  are  consistent  only  in  part  with 

Wace's  conception: 
The  historical  Arthur 
The  unfaithful  Guinevere 
The  historical  Kay 

e.  Persons  that  show  no  evidence  of  having  come  from  Wace: 

Merlin. 

Sixteen  of  Crestien 's  characters,  therefore,  show  a  more  or  less 
close  resemblance  to  corresponding  characters  in  the  Brut.    Six  of 


148  THE  INFLUENCE  OP  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


these  are,  in  the  works  of  both  Crestien  and  his  source,  distinguished 
figures:  Angres,  Arthur,  Gawain,  Guinevere,  Kay,  Yvain. 

III.  Geography. 

a.  The  use  of  Bretaigne : 

1.  To  mean  Great  Britain  and  Armorica 

2.  To  mean  England  exclusive  of  Scotland,  Wales  and 

Cornwall 

b.  The  general  geography  of  certain  romances : 

1.  Cliges  shows  a  decidedly  historical  geography  through 

the  laying  of  the  scene  successively  at  Southamp- 
ton, Winchester,  Dover,27  Canterbury,27  the  Thames, 
London,  Wallingford,  Oxford. 

2.  Lancelot.   The  scene  lies  in  Bretaingne  et  Comoailles 

and  in  and  around  Bath. 

c.  Geographical  names  that  point  back  to  historical  events  or 

situations  described  in  the  Brut. 

1.  Reminiscent  of  Arthur's  conquests  in  the  Island  or  on 

the  continent,  and  used  by  Crestien  to  denote  royal 
residences  or  territory  over  which  Arthur  has  the 
sovereignty : 

Anjou  Ireland 
Brittany  Normandy 
Carlion  The  Orkneys 

Chester  Poitou 
Galloway  Scotland 
Gloucester  Wales 
York 

2.  Reminiscent  of  the  amour  of  Uther  and  Ygerne: 
Tintagel 

3.  Reminiscent  of  the  primitive  history  of  the  Island: 

Logres 

IV.  Romantic  background. 

The  influence  of  Wace  seems  to  be  traceable  in  Crestien 's 
conception  and  presentation  of  the  Arthurian  Court.  Wace  may 
not  be  regarded  as  exclusively  responsible  for  Crestien 's  use  of 
the  Round  Table.  Crestien  did  not  borrow  from  Wace  the  Cas- 
tle of  Maidens  and  the  Dolorous  Mount.  In  fact,  the  latter 
occurs  only  in  the  HUB. 

27  Merely  mentioned. 


CONCLUSIONS 


149 


Y.    The  Moral  and  Social  ideas : 

a.  The  two  moralistic  ideas:  books  as  the  preservatives  of 
ancient  civilization,  and  the  dangers  of  sloth  are  not  likely  to 
have  come  from  Wace.  They  more  probably  represent  a  con- 
ventional attitude. 

b.  Wace 's  conception  of  chivalry  is  likely  to  have  had  direct 
and  important  influence. 

When  one  takes  into  consideration  the  bulk  of  Crestien's  work 
and  the  motifs,  situations,  events,  and  characters  therein  contained 
which  are  totally  unconnected  with  Wace's  chronicles  one  is  likely 
to  feel  that  Crestien's  obligation  is  not  large,  and  rests,  as  Gaston 
Paris  thought,  only  on  a  few  details.28  But  these  details  when 
brought  together,  form  a  considerable  body  of  material,  and  in 
some  cases  play  an  important  role.  The  marriage  and  coronation 
ceremonies  of  the  Erec  are  the  two  most  important .  spectacular 
events  in  the  romance,  occupying  together  800  lines  or  about  one 
eighth  of  the  whole  narrative.  The  story  of  Angres's  treachery  is 
one  of  the  two  lines  of  action  in  the  first  half  of  Cliges.  The  hos- 
tility between  Arthur's  kingdom  and  Gorre  constitutes  the  envelop- 
ing action  of  the  Charrete.  Traits  of  six  of  Crestien's  leading  char- 
acters probably  owe  their  being  to  Wace :  The  Arthur  of  the  Cliges, 
the  Guinevere  of  the  Charrete,  Gawain,  Yvain,  Angres,  Kay.  The 
geography  of  Cliges  and  Lancelot  seems  to  have  been  suggested  by 
the  Brut.  Crestien's  conception  of  the  Arthurian  Court,  the  in- 
stitution that  dominates  all  of  his  romances  is  probably  colored  by 
Wace's  descriptions.  Not  only  do  these  prominent  features  show 
the  effect  of  Wace,  presumably,  but  a  number  of  minor  details  are 
as  we  have  seen,  probably  traceable,  at  least  in  part,  to  Wace's 
chronicles. 

A  consideration  that  adds  to  the  difficulty  in  determining  the 
degree  of  Crestien 's  indebtedness  is  that  his  use  of  models  does  not 
appear  to  be  slavish.  To  judge  by  what  is  known  of  his  method,29 
his  tendency  seems  to  be  to  take  an  idea  from  Wace  as  a  suggestion, 
a  point  of  departure,  and  develop  it  either  independently,  or  by 
relating  it  to  material  found  elsewhere.  This  method  he  appears 
to  have  followed  in  the  Erec  marriage  and  coronation  ceremonies,  in 

28  Paris  in  expressing  this  view,  did  not  have  Crestien  especially  in  mind ;  he  meant 
Arthurian  metrical  romances  in  general.    See  p.  1,  &  n.  1. 
20  See  Nitze,  MP  VII  (1909)  145  f.;  IX,  4,  n.  1. 


150  THE  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 

the  Broceliande  fountain  episode  in  Yvain,  and  in  the  Cliges  inci- 
dents, traceable  to  the  Brut.  The  converse  of  this  method  he  may 
have  followed  in  his  handling  of  the  Charrete  situation,  and  in  the 
character  of  Arthur,  for  example.  Here  he  has  apparently  re- 
ceived his  suggestion  from  some  other  source  and  has  used  Wace 
for  purposes  of  modification. 

The  fact  that  Crestien  seems  to  have  followed  Thomas  for  his 
Cliges  more  closely  than  he  has  imitated  "Wace  at  any  time  does  not 
oppose  the  above  theory.  In  this  case  the  imitation  appears  to  have 
been  done  with  deliberate  purpose.  Crestien  is  here  presenting  the 
converse  of  the  situation  in  the  Tristan,  is  writing  what  Foerster 
calls  an  Anti-Tristan,  and  his  end  could  be  much  more  effectively 
gained  by  following  his  original  in  framework  and  in  detail  than 
if  he  had  adopted  a  different  structure.  Even  the  Marques  de  Borne 
story  on  which  the  second  part  of  the  romance  is  based 30  has  not 
been  followed  to  the  letter.  Apparently  Crestien  not  only  adds 
many  important  details  but  his  point  of  view  is  quite  different  from 
that  of  his  original.31 

Incidently  this  study  has  emphasized  the  following  points  of 
interest : 

1.  Crestien  seems  to  have  used  his  sources  chiefly  for  pur- 
poses of  suggestion  rather  than  of  servile  imitation. 

2.  He  is  for  the  most  part  indifferent  to  geographical  accuracy, 
his  interest  lying  mainly  in  the  conduct  of  his  characters. 

3.  On  the  whole,  Crestien  is  nearer  Wace  in  his  earlier  tales, 
Erec  and  Cliges  than  he  is  in  his  later  narratives.  This  fact  may 
throw  some  light  on  the  development  of  Arthurian  romance.  The 
chronicle  certainly  gave  it  a  start.  Then  it  attracted  popular  and 
other  features  and  became  more  and  more  complex,  until  it  reached 
the  height  of  complexity  in  the  prose  romances. 

4.  The  Arthurian  Court  as  a  focus  for  adventure,  the  romantic 
Arthur,  and  the  romantic  Kay  may  have  originated  with  Crestien. 

5.  Critical  opinion,  when  it  has  recognized  the  value  of  Geoffrey 
as  the  literary  transmitter  of  Arthurian  legend,  has  neglected  the 
importance  of  Wace  in  this  function.  Wace,  by  employing  the 
octosyllabic  couplet  which  became  the  romantic  verse  form  of  the 
period;  by  the  exhibition  of  narrative  skill  in  the  use  of  suspense 

30  See  C,  3rd  ed.  XXXIX. 
81  See  C,  3rd  ed.  XXXIII. 


CONCLUSIONS 


151 


and  by  vivifying  his  story  with  abundant  specific  detail,  dialogue, 
and  direct  address;  and  by  the  markedly  chivalric  treatment  of 
character  and  situation,  is  highly  significant  as  an  artistic  medium 
for  the  transmission  of  chronicle  Arthurian  material  from  Geoffrey 
of  Monmouth  to  the  literature  of  northern  France.32 

33  A  study  of  Wace's  influence  on  Crestien  from  the  point  of  view  of  material  alone, 
touches  only  one  side  of  the  question ;  style  also  should  be  considered.  In  such  features 
as  the  tirade  lyrique  (See  MP  IV  [1906]  627)  and  direct  parallelism  (MP  III  [1905] 
517)  Warren  shows  that  Wace  had  no  small  influence  on  the  poets  of  his  day,  among  whom 
Crestien  was  naturally  prominent.  These  investigations  suggest  fruitful  possibilities. 
There  are  also  such  matters  as  rime,  diction,  figures  of  speech,  the  practice  of  using 
proverbs,  and  of  specific  detail  in  description  and  narrative  that  deserve  examination. 
This  subject  of  style  would  involve  a  study  not  only  of  the  writings  of  Wace  and  Cres- 
tien, but  also  to  some  extent  of  French  poetry  before  and  contemporary  with  the  Brut 
and  the  Rou  in  order  to  determine  how  far  certain  elements  of  6tyle  common  to  Wace 
and  Crestien  are  peculiar  to  or  used  excessively  by  Wace,  or  are  commonplaces  of  the  day. 
Such  an  investigation  would  obviously  better  be  handled  in  a  separate  volume. 


INDEX 


JEthelweard's  Chronicle,  3. 

Agned,  Mount,  7,  74,  141. 

Aguisel,  4,  5,  19,  21,  31,  37,  47,  78-80, 

99,  107,  113,  126,  147. 
Alexander,  father  of  Cliges,  34-42, 

49,  84,  101,  109,  129,  130,  136, 

137,  146,  147. 
Ambrosius  Aurelianus,  See  Merlin. 
Andegavia,  See  Anjou. 
Andre  le  Chapelain,  63. 
Angres,  34-40,  49,  61,  79,  84,  107, 

129,  146,  147,  148,  149. 
Anjou,  4,  19,  22,  47,  97,  123,  124,  148. 
Aquitaine,  4. 

Aravius,  Araive,  Mountain  of,  68,  70- 
76. 

Armoriea,  See  Brittany. 

Arthur,  2,  3,  4,  5,  7,  8,  78,  113,  etc. 

character  of,  80-87. 

coronation  of,  18-20. 

return  of,  6. 
Arthurian   Court,   87,   132-139,  144, 

146,  149,  150. 
Avalon,  6,  37,  124,  126. 
Bade,  See  Bath. 
Ban  of  Gomeret,  134. 
Bath,  Bath  Hill,  3,  4,  50-61,  82,  124. 
Baudemagus,  52,  55-61,  78,  87,  89, 

113,  147. 
Bede,  3. 

Bedver,  5,  19,  20,  31,  78,  83,  87,  97, 

98,  113,  146,  147. 
Benedict  of  Peterborough,  28,  29. 
Berenton,  63,  64,  65,  66. 
Bladud,  Bladus,  58,  60,  .78,  147. 
Boulogne,  Buluigne,  47,  48,  82: 
Bretons  (Britons)  22,  52,  55,  56,  63, 

64,  97,  108,  112,  114-121,  123, 

136,  137,  138,  139. 
Bricriu,  93,  95. 

Britain  (Bretaigne  I)  2,  3,  5,  35,  37, 
52,  53,  56,  83,  85,  105,  106,  108, 
110,  114-121,  122  (?),  124,  136, 
148. 


Brittany  (Bretaigne  II)  Armoriea, 
34,  36,  38,  48,  49,  84,  108,  114- 
121,  122(?),  123,  125,  129,  148. 

Broceliande,  63,  64,  65,  66,  122,  123- 
124,  125,  147,  150. 

Brut  Gruff y old  ab  Arthur,  72,  76. 

Brut  (Lajamon),  71. 

Brut,  Roman  de  (Wace)  2,  5-10,  11 
18,  etc. 
chivalric  spirit  of,  145,  146. 

Burgundians  (Burguignuns),  18,  139. 

Burgundy,  37. 

Cador,  Duke  of  Cornwall,  144,  145. 
Cadovalanz,  Cadvall-on-em,  Cadvalan, 

78,  87,  113,  147. 
Caius,  See  Kay. 
Cainalot,  53. 

Canterbury,  24,  125,  129,  148. 
Caradigan,  13,  73-76,  134. 
Carduel,  72-76,  123,  124,  133. 
Carlion,  Karliiin,  8,  18,  19,  23,  37,  53, 

74,  75,  125,  132,  148. 
Carlisle,  See  Carduel. 
Carnant,  121-123. 
Castle  Marvelous,  104,  105,  134. 
Castle  of  Maidens,  7,  132,  141-144, 

148. 

Charlemagne,  85,  144. 

court  of,  137-138. 
Chester,  122,  124,  125,  133,  148. 
Chevalier  as  Bens  Espees,  72,  75,  77. 
Chevalier  de  la  Charrete,  See  Lance- 
lot. 

Chevalier  du  Papegaut,  43,  46. 

Cliges,  42,  45,  46,  47,  etc. 

Cliges,  12,  13,  14,  15,  17,  27,  35-50, 

79,  etc. 

Constantinople,^  Expedition  against, 

47,  49,  85,  146. 
Conte  du  Graal,  See  Perceval. 
Cornwall,  19,  22,  37,  53,  56,  114,  118, 

119,  120,  121,  123,  125,  148. 
Crestien  de  Troies,  2,  9,  12-16,  17,  etc. 
Dacia,  See  Denmark. 


INDEX 


153 


Daneis  (The  Danes),  19,  47. 
De  Exicidio  et  Conquestu  Britanniae, 
3. 

Denmark,  4,  103,  104,  128. 

Dover,  125,  129,  148. 

Dream  of  Rhonabwy,  96,  97,  103. 

Dux  bellorum,  3. 

Echaid  Airan,  143. 

Edinborough,  See  Agned. 

England   (Angleterre),  22,  48,  116, 

117,  118,  119,  120,  121,  122,  123, 

124,  148. 
Enide,  18,  79,  87,  98,  102. 

coronation  and  marriage  of,  20-34. 
Eoricus,  121. 

Erec,  18,  79,  88,  98,  102,  106,  121-3, 
134,  etc. 

coronation  and  marriage  of,  20-34. 
Erec,  12,  13,  14,  15,  17,  18-34,  79,  etc. 
Eryri,  72. 

Esclados  li  Ros,  65. 

Escoz  (inhabitants  of  Scotland),  80, 

82,  119,  123,  139. 
Eventus,  See  Yvain. 
Flemish  (Flamens)  18,  139. 
Flanders,  47,  48,  82,  118,  125. 
Four  Days'  Tournament,  42-46,  135, 

147. 

France,  47,  48,  49,  117,  118,  125. 

French  (Franceis),  18,  139. 

Galloway,  19,  125,  126,  148. 

Galinguefort,  See  Wallingford. 

Galvoie,  Gavoie,  See  Galloway. 

Ganelon,  38,  85,  137. 

Gaul,  4,  82,  97,  107,  121. 

Gawain,  4,  5,  9,  17,  19,  20,  31,  37,  41- 
42,  45-46,  54,  58,  59,  79,  81,  83, 
86,  88,  89,  91,  94,  97,  100,  102, 
104,  105,  106,  128,  134,  145,  146, 
147,  148,  149. 
character  of,  110-113. 

Geoffrey  of  Monmouth,  1,  3,  4,  5-10, 
17,  etc. 

Geraint,  122. 

Gesta  Regum  Anglorum,  3,  110. 
Geste  as  Bretons,  See  Roman  de  Brut. 
Gildas,  3,  162. 


Glastonbury,  52,  53,  62,  104. 
Gloucester,  125,  148. 
Godfrei  de  Leigny,  13,  57. 
Gorre,  50,  52,  53,  56,  57,  58,  60,  147, 
149. 

Gothland,  4,  52,  128. 
Gotlandeis  (inhabitants  of  Gothland), 
19,  47. 

Guanhumara,  See  Guinevere. 
Guerec,  122. 

Guillaume  d' Angleterre,  1,  12,  13. 

Guinevere,  4,  5,  7,  8,  36,  37,  50,  51, 
53,  54,  58,  61-3,  78,  85,  89,  90,  94, 
100-102,  103,  113,  147,  148,  149. 

Hantone,  See  Southampton. 

Harpin  de  la  Montaigne,  67,  100,  147. 

Henry  of  Huntington,  3. 

Hiderus,  See  Yder. 

Historia  Anglorum,  3. 

Historia  Britonum,  3; 

Historia  Regum  Britanniae,  4-10,  18, 
etc. 

Hoel,  Duke  of  Brittany,  37,  47,  49, 

67,  83,  111,  115. 
Iceland,  41,  51,  128. 
Icelandeis,  19,  47. 
He  as  Puceles,  141. 
He  de  Verre,  50,  52. 
Imram  Mailduin,  143. 
Ireland,  4,  51,  82,  93,  109,  125,  132, 

148. 

Ireis  (inhabitants  of  Ireland),  22,  47, 

51,  119,  123. 
Joie  de  la  Cort,  60,  145. 
Karliiin,  See  Carlion. 
Kay,  Kei,  Keus,  Kex  (Caius),  19,  21, 
,    31,  54,  78,  83,  85,  86,  113,  137, 

146,  147,  148,  149,  150. 
character  of,  87-98. 
Kulhwch  and  Olwen,  95,  97,  103. 
La  3a  in  on,  12,  71. 

Lancelot,  17,  42,  50,  51,  54-63,  79,  83, 
86,  101. 

Lancelot,  12,  13,  15,  17,  50-63,  79,  ete. 

Liber  Vetustissimus,  4. 

Logres,  54,  55,  56,  118,  125,  148. 


154 


THE.  INFLUENCE  OF  WACE  ON  CRESTIEN  DE  TROIES 


London,  23,  37,  38,  53,  104,  125,  129, 
130,  148. 

Lot,  9,  19,  78,  79,  104,  105-106,  107, 

111,  113,  128,  147. 
Mabinogion,  95,  97,  99,  103,  106. 
Marie  de  Champagne,  13,  15,  17,  50, 

51,  63. 
Marie  de  France,  2. 
Marques  de  Rome,  17,  49,  150. 
Meliaganz,  50,  53-61,  85. 
Melwas,  50,  53,  62. 
Merlin,  3,  70,  78,  104,  106,  108,  109, 

113,  117,  147. 
Merlin,  Prophecies  of,  72. 
Modred,  4,  5,  34-40,  61,  63,  79,  80, 

99,  102,  105,  107,  111,  147. 
Mont  Perilleus,  143. 
Mont  Saint  Michel,  5,  8,  67,  76,  81,  97. 
Mount  Badon,  See  Bath  Hill. 
Mount  Dolorous,  7,  132,  141-144,  148. 
Nantes,  21,  22,  23,  24,  117,  121-123. 
Nennius,  2,  74,  80,  108. 
Neustria,  See  Normandy. 
Normandy,  4,  19,  47,  48,  49,  97,  117, 

118,  125,  148. 
Normans,  18,  22,  119,  123,  139. 
Noreis  (inhabitants  of  Norway),  19, 

47,  106. 
Norway,  4,  105,  106,  128,  147. 
Nut,  79,  102,  103-104,  107,  113,  147. 
Orcanie,  See  Orkneys. 
Orkneys,  4,  19,  51,  52,  125,  128,  148. 
Orqueneis   (inhabitants  of  the  Ork- 
neys), 47. 
Ossenefort,  See  Oxford. 
Owein,  See  Yvain. 
Oxford,  42,  125,  130-131,  148. 
Partonopeus  de  Blois,  9. 
Pendragon,  See  Uther. 
Perceval,  42,  67,  72,  79,  82,  86,  90, 

91,  92,  94,  134. 
Perceval,  11,  13,  15,  17,  27,  67-77,  79, 

etc. 
Peredur,  46. 

Philip  Augustus,  15,  28,  29. 
Philip  of  Flanders,  12,  13,  15,  17,  29, 
86. 


Peitevins,  18,  123. 

Peitou,  Poitou,  47,  123,  125,  148. 

Pont  de  l'Espee,  50,  59,  60. 

Pont  Evage,  50,  59. 

Recueil  des  Historiens  des  Gauls  et 

de  la  France,  28,  29. 
Red  Knight,  86,  90. 
Rhita  (Gawr)  See  Rion. 
Rion,  King  of  the  Isles,  67-77,  78, 

107,  146,  147. 
Ris,  See  Rion. 
Riton,  See  Rion. 

Roman  de  Brut,  See  Brut,  Roman  de. 
Roman  de  Rou,  See  Rou,  Roman  de. 
Rome,  War  with,  5,  9,  79,  83,  102, 

106,  107,  111,  132,  133,  138. 
Rou,  Roman  de,  12,  63,  65,  66,  116, 

127,  144. 

Round  Table,  2,  6,  20,  66,  98,  105, 
106,  132,  137-141,  144,  146,  148. 

Sagremor,  42,  79,  91. 

Saxon  Chronicle,  3. 

Scotland,  4,  19,  21,  53,  114,  120,  121, 
125,  126,  148. 

Sloth,  144-145,  149. 

Snowdon,  See  Eryri. 

Southampton,  53,  125,  127-128,  129, 
130,  148. 

Spain,  49,  132. 

Tamise  (Thames),  40,  125,  129,  130, 
148. 

Thomas,  1,  9,  15,  17,  49,  61,  67,  72, 

93,  94,  150. 
Tintagel,  125,  129,  148. 
Triads,  96,  99,  106,  108,  109. 
Tristan,  1,  9,  15,  17,  49,  C%  72,  93, 

150. 

Urien,  4,  5,  19,  20,  31,  79,  98,  99,  100, 
113. 

character  of,  107-108. 
Uther  (Pendragon),  4,  40,  79,  104, 
105,  107,  113,  129,  134,  146,  148. 
character  of,  108-110. 
Uxoriousness,  145. 
Verliegenheit,  145. 

Vita  Gildae  (Caradoc  of  Lancarvan), 
53,  62. 


INDEX 


155 


Vortigern,  3,  108. 
Wace,  1,  2,  etc. 
Compared  with  Geoffrey  of  Mon- 
mouth, 5-10. 
Life  of,  10-12. 
Wales,  22,  52,  69,  70,  72,  74,  75,  76, 
108,  110,  114,  120,  121,  122,  125, 
148. 

Walgannus,  See  Gawain. 
Walker,  Williston,  28,  29. 
Wallingford,  125,  130-131,  148. 
Walter,  Archdeacon  of  Oxford,  4. 
Weroc,  121. 


William  of  Malmesbury,  3,  110. 
Winchester,  38,  39,  53,  109,  125,  129, 
148. 

Windsor,  34,  35,  38,  40,  129,  130,  147. 

Yder,  78,  102-104,  113,  147. 

Ygerne,  4,  78,  104-105,  113,  129,  134, 

147,  148. 
York,  51,  125,  141. 
Yvain,  5,  19,  20,  31,  78,  79,  90,  98- 

100,  105,  107,  113,  123,  124,  145, 

146,  147,  148,  149. 
Yvain,  12,  13,  17,  63-67,  79,  etc. 


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